Unbreakable (One Piece)
by blood splatter queen
Summary: As Minette talked, as she pointed up and smiled while she talked about the stars, all Zoro could think about was how lost he would be without her by his side. Not the usual lost he seems to get himself in, but the type that rips out your heart. The type that leaves your soul cracked an broken without any option of turning around to pick up the pieces. The type of lost that can kill
1. Prologue

_Alone._

 _Yes, that is the key word, the most awful word in the English tongue. Murder doesn't hold a candle to it and hell is a poor synonym._

 _~Stephen King_

Loving people draws them close to you. She can't tolerate being close. She can't breath with people close. The lightest touch is a blow. She can't tolerate being touched.

She doesn't know why. At night, when she's all alone, she sometimes tries to think why she is this way. Thinking about it only makes her cry. When she's alone in the dark, crying, she wishes that she lived in a different world, not this one.

Here, where she was entirely and utterly alone, she also can't tolerate the silence. She can't breath without the once lively noises of the people that once filled this land with song and dance, of the bird's calling, of the bee's working, of _her_ laughing…

Now all there was left was the sound of her stomach pleading for real food; here, on this small, deserted, fruitless island, she was dying from the lack of food, clean water, and human contact.

She was young, now twelve years old, and has only seen her once beautiful village turn to ruin in her lifetime… But _she_ was younger. When she was ten years old, her twin sister was taken away from her by a monster only she could see; she died from her nightmares.

It was such a long time into hiding from the pirates in the forest when her worst dreams started becoming better than the world she woke up to that morning. Soon, the real world became the true nightmare and her dreamless naps were her only escape from it. But, not even the salvation of sleep could protect her from the true nightmare of living. They had found her and with one simple swipe of a dull blade, she was gone.

She knew that her twin was better off, that a quick death in her sleep was a thousand times better than dying of starvation and loneliness. Her only regret was not being there to die with her. To take her hand and walk into the 'light' together. But she was stuck here and sentenced to die a slow and painful death by the pirates that killed everyone she's ever came in contact with, everyone she's ever know, everyone she's ever came to love.

She was the only one left, the only one to remember what it was like before the inevitable.

She couldn't tolerate people… too scared they would get too close and she would lose them too.

" _Did you have a nightmare in your sleep again, Shi?"_

" _No. It was when I woke up, Minette."_

" _What happened when you woke up?"_

" _I was having a dream. I don't know what it was, but when I woke up, I had this bad realization that I was awake. It hit me like a brick in the face."_

" _Like a brick in the face. I see."_

" _I didn't want to wake up. I was having a much better time asleep. And that's really sad. It was almost like a reverse nightmare, like when you wake up from a nightmare you're so relieved. I woke up into a nightmare, Minette."_

" _And what is that nightmare, Shi?"_

" _Life."_

" _Life is a nightmare."_

" _Yeah. It really is Minette..."_


	2. Chapter: 1

_Life is not meant to be easy, my child; but take courage: it can be delightful."_

 _~George Bernard Shaw_

Going to the village ruins was never a good idea; because that was where they were, feasting on the corpses of her beloved livestock, farm produce, and people. These pirates - who not only hungered for simple foods but also the flesh of humans - were merciless. As soon as they arrived on the island, they started stripping everyone of their lives one by one. Making children run to the cover of the trees only to play a deadly game of hide and seek with the cannibals. The child would either be slaughtered quickly or sentenced to die of starvation and isolation if never found. Either way, they would get their food and leave once every living thing - even plants - were dead and consumed.

Minette was only alive because of her great ability to climb branchless trees and hold a continuous, undying energy that kept her forever awake the night Shi was murdered. It was true. There was no more reason left to live, but Minette was determined not to die by the vicious teeth of pirates. No. If she was going to die, she was going to die when she decided on it, when she was ready. Seeing Shi lifeless in a pool of her own blood did not inspire her to continue living in the slightest. In fact, she had contemplated suicide the very moment her mind realized that Shi was no longer there with her. But seeing her lay there, in an eternal slumber, gave her enough push to live the life she wanted Shi to have: a happy one.

In dreams, she didn't want to die but when it came time to waking up she couldn't help but feel like death was easier than trying to avoid the inevitable everyday. Just like how Shi had once explained, but also like how Shi fought everyday not to think such things, Minette tried her best too.

Standing only four feet and eleven inches tall, Minette is able to sneak into the ruined village and steal something small from a produce field or a weapon cabinet in an abandoned house if the pirates guarding the area is scarce that day. She had even managed to steal a canister of clean water at one point, but doing so she gave them a big hint that she was still alive and out there. When that happened - only two days ago - the amount of pirates looking through the forest and guarding the outside line of the village were doubled. She could no longer move during the day, could no longer steal during the night; all she could do was stay hidden in the trees with her only weapon: a small dagger she stole from the village days before being found out.

And now was no different.

Sitting high above the dirt ground in a heavily leaved tree, Minette sat with the dagger in her lap as she started up at the starry night sky.

As she stared she thought of what else was out there, who else was out there, if she was truly the only one left in her village to survive, and if she would even make it out of this alive.

She wondered if Shi was watching over her, making sure the pain of hunger was never too strong to bring her older sister to her knees and weep.

She wondered if anyone would come and save her from this horrid life.

She wondered if the Marines even knew of these cannibalistic pirates.

She wondered what she would do, where she would go once this was all over; or if this was ever going to end and when.

She wondered how much longer she was going to last now that stealing food and water from the village was out of question forever. It has already been two days without anything and she was just beginning to feel the sharp pains in her torso from not eating, just beginning to feel light headed and drowsy from not drinking. At this rate, would she be able to survive much longer if the pirates never give up the search for her? And in this weak of a state, if they did find her, would she be able to protect herself?

Minette sighed, her thoughts instantly coming to a blank slate from the simple sound her heavy breath produced in the stiff silence. She hadn't listened to her own voice since Shi died, and she wasn't willing to risk being heard from a wandering stranger set out to eat her. If not talking meant not getting caught but also never speaking again, she could live with that. It was the silence she wasn't too sure of.

Blinking out of another daze, Minette fixed her light grey eyes to the sea. It was calm tonight and reflected the stars like a mirror, but Minette knew better than to think what was in those waters was also calm. After all, they did carry these pirates to her island; but that only made her wonder what else they would bring to her…

Three days had passed and Minette had found a new tree to rest on. This one gave a clare view of the ocean and abandoned village docks with large green leaves to hide her existence from being discovered by pirates passing by below her.

Towards morning, when a dingy gray was varnishing the sky, the cry of some startled bird focused Minette's attention in that direction. Something was coming through the bush, coming slowly, carefully, coming the same way Minette had come from. She flattened herself against the tree limb, and through a screen of leaves almost as thick as tapestry, she watched. The thing that was approaching was a man.

It was one of the pirates. He made his way along with his eyes fixed in utmost concentration on the ground before him, He paused, almost beneath the tree, dropped to his knees and studies the ground. Minette's impulse was to hurl herself down like a panther, but she saw the pirate's right hand held something metallic - a long sword.

The pirate shook his head several times, as if he were puzzled. Then he straightened up and took from his case of his cigarettes; its thick smoke floated up to Minette's nostrils.

Minette held her breath. The pirate's eyes had left the ground and were traveling inch by inch up the tree. Minette froze there, every muscle tensed for spring. But the sharp eyes of the pirate stopped before they reached the limb where Minette lay; a smile spread over his dirt covered face. Very deliberately he blew a smoke ring into the air; then he turned his back on the tree and walked carelessly away, back along the trail he had come. The swish of the underbrush against his baggy shorts grew fainter and fainter.

Then pent-up air burst hotly from Minette's lungs. Her first thought made her feel sick and numb. The pirate could follow a trail through the woods at night, he could follow a trail that went through two streams and a river!

Minette's second thought was even more terrible. It sent a shudder of cold horror through her whole being. Why was the pirate smiling? Why had he turned back?

Were they just toying with her sanity now?


	3. Chapter: 2

_All progress is precarious, and the solution of one problem brings us face to face with another problem._

 _~Martin Luther King Jr._

Run.

Run.

She must run despite having no physical energy left. She was only functioning on the will to live now and as she ran - away from the bests trying to capture her - she questioned if that alone would be enough.

Being so far ahead she was able to run a fox trail, crossing her steps and weaving through trees before she back traced her steps to a tree so far away that it eliminated any possibility of getting captured today. Now, all she had to do was stay here until they draw near again but she feared that it wouldn't take them long to find her.

After eight days without any form of food and only droplets of rain water to quench her thirst, the effects of starvation is what got her found in the first place. Sitting in a tree, she heard them coming threw the brush, not trying to conceal their presence from her. They wanted her to be scared, but Minette was only scared of what her stomach was going to do. From the past half hour it did nothing but sound its demand for her to eat something and now, in the face of obvious danger, it was no different. She knew they could hear her from where they were standing a couple feet away from the tree and the only choice was to run.

It was hard facing with the fact that they knew for sure she existed now and had a definite target, but at least now she was somewhat safe again.

"Come out, come out, come out Little Girl! We know you're there!" A voice shot through the silence and sent shivers down her spine. It sounded far away, like it was facing the wrong direction as it called out, but Minette was too cautious to look through the thick layers of leaves protecting her, in fear that they would be right beneath her.

"Our finding you is inevitable! We'll either find you today or dead in tomorrow's sunrise. Face it Little Girl, you can't run forever in this forest and you sure as hell will not get off without dying first!" A second voice laughed deep and heavy with his partner and she could hear no one else laughing with them. It was just the two who found her hours ago and chased her out of her tree.

Holding the dagger with so much strength it turned the knuckles on her left hand white while the other hand held a death grip to the tree branch she sat on. Hoping more than anything they would go away soon before other pirates came in search of them and find her too.

Just then, her stomach gave an inhuman growl so loud it rung in the ears of the laughing pare a few feet away from her tree. They instantly stopped to listen for it again, and they were not met with silence as Minette had hoped. Her stomach gave another rumble like thunder threatening to strike from above and the pirates belted out another deep laugh as they knew all too well what that sound was caused by and where it came from.

Still laughing as he stalked towards Minette's tree, he said, "It's really quite interesting what a cocktail mixed with hunger and loneliness can do to someone. Wouldn't you agree Mozu?"

"I believe it one hundred persent, Shaw."

"So, do you remember when we found that other little girl in the forest a month ago?" The first pirate asked, making Minette's whole body freeze. But despite her attempts to try and reassure herself that they were not talking about Shi, she couldn't help but question it.

"How she begged for death? How could I not?! Awaking from her slumber, she didn't dare scream in fear… her older sister would come looking for her…"

Minette froze, not wanting to believe such vile creatures. And why should she? They were pirates, and all pirates lied, right?! It just couldn't be true!

"And the little girl smiled before death. She welcomed it with open arms. To think of how selfish she was to abandon her sister like that. To think that she would make her sister keep living like this."

" _Hey, Minette?"_

" _Yes, Shi?"_

" _Are you going to disappear some day too?"_

" _What - never. Why would you ask that?"_

" _Well… you're always talking about escaping, aren't you? Always thinking about it. Always dreaming about it."_

" _Shi, I wouldn't leave you because of that."_

" _But… what if I left you first? Would you be able to escape then?"_

" _Stop talking like that, Shi. No one is going anywhere because I'll protect you forever. I promise."_

" _... Minette?"_

" _Yes, Shi?"_

" _Why did everyone just randomly die?"_

" _Huh."_

" _What?"_

" _There it is again."_

" _There what is again?"_

" _The dark haze has come and just won't lift from you mind, will it Shi?"_

" _It never left, Minette."_

Blinking out of her memory, Minette was confused as to why she was no longer in the tree but on the forest floor and panting with a searing pain gripping her right side. Blinking again she found her pale hands splattered with red ink as more of the red liquid dripped from the knife still held in her left hand. The hot pain brought her grey eyes to land upon her side. The red liquid was soaking through the cloth and down her leg. Lifting the shirt carefully, her eyes widened upon finding a deep gash in her side and a bloody sword laying ownerless to the right of where she stood.

She had been cut. But how? She was in the tree just a moment ago and now she was alone on the forest floor, bleeding. Where did the pirates go, and how did she-

Upon glancing towards the tree she once hid in, she found the two pirates, tied with tree vines and hanging by their ankles. Their throats were slashed, blood running down their faces to pool below them as she also saw stab wounds in their chest and stomach area.

Minette backed away in complete and utter shock and horror, but stumbled when her wounded side produced a volt of pain to wrack her mind.

This wasn't real, this wasn't real, this wasn't real! This couldn't be real! She didn't kill these men, she didn't! She wasn't physically strong enough! She would never stand up to pirates!

Screaming, Minette woke up. But she quickly clasped her hands around her mouth as she started to weep. She felt no pain as she moved to hug her knees to her chest, she saw no blood as she glanced around the now dark forest floor. She was back in her tree, safe until sunrise when the hunt for her continues. How she had fallen asleep in the first place was beyond her, but she was going to make sure she was never going to ever again.

She cried in relief that it was just a nightmare or a hallucination from being dehydrated, but that relief vanished when she saw another ship sailing towards her island. She could faintly make out the outline of a skull with a straw hat painted on its main sail.

Her heart sank as she realized more pirates were coming to the island…


	4. Chapter: 3

_Ability is of little account without opportunity._

 _~Napoleon Bonaparte_

Minette watched as the ship made it into port by sunrise and was fully situated by early morning. None of the cannibal pirates came to this side of the island in fear they would ruin their ship on the serrated rocky cliffs and shallow water, but these pirates were fortunate enough to find the hidden loading docs. This also means that if they were also terribly murderous pirates like the ones that overthrown the area, then Minette was not going to make it out of here alive and there was sure to be a deadly battle between the two ships for territory. Saddly, she knew that her home was going to become a battlefield soon.

If she wanted to live then she needed to leave immediately, but first, she was going to need a ship…

She waited in her tree, watching the ship with growing curiosity. The more she studied it the more she grew to question if it was actually a pirate ship. It certainly didn't look like a pirate ship, most definitely not with a smiling ram head in the very forefront of the ship. But there was no mistaking the main sail as it sat all black with their pirate seal for everyone to see. What was even stranger was that no one dared come off of the boat until early noon and when they finally did, only four people stepped off, leaving a blond man behind. What type of captain only has five crewmen including him?

Nothing was adding up, what were they doing here? Was it supplies? A need of a simple break from the sea? Did they come to pick a fight with the cannibals? Or was it just dumb luck and the current carried them here during the night?

Whatever the reasoning, they were her only ticket out of here and the only ship to be seen since the raid happened. It was time to make a life changing move that hopefully didn't kill her in the long run.

Watching as the four shipmen stepped off the doc, Minette couldn't help but wonder who their captain was; for, who would hire a young women and two boys in their late teens? The fourth character looked more like a pirate than all of them combined. Green hair, baggy black pants tucked into black boots and three swords on his right hip. He could be the captain, but the group was following the boy wearing the red shirt, rolled up blue jeans, sandals, and a straw hat matching their ship's sail.

Whatever. They don't matter. She was going to take their ship and if that was impossible then she was going to rob them blind.

With that thought in mind, Minette waited for them to disappear into the forest before she made her move down the tree, careful not to step on any crunchy leaves or weak twigs in fear of alarming anything or anyone close enough to hear. Upon her landing, she lifted the hood to her light grey hoodie over her head and put the dagger in the front pocket incase of future use. Her first step was shaky. She was so dizzy from no food or water in nine days she could barely keep herself standing; which made her question if she was really physically capable of overtaking a ship or fighting if she got caught by the one who stayed behind. But this made her question what would happen to her if she didn't try. The cannibals would make sure her death was as painful as it could get because she stole from them.

Using that as inspiration enough, she made one shaky foot step in front of the other, used the surrounding trees to hold her up, and walked along the nonexistent path towards the hidden dock. Towards her only salvation. Her eyes half lidded and the overwhelming sense of everything around her spinning, had brought her to her knees, making her pant, but only for a moment before she got right back up and struggled forwards again.

She could hear how much noise she was making, her heart hammering with in her chest in fear that the cannibals would find her before she could reach her destination, but that pushed her further. She wasn't ready to die and she sure as hell was not going to die on this Godforsaken island with everyone else. She was going to live. She had to live. For Shi.

Minette's foot caught on a tree rout, sending her tumbling forwards down the rest of the hill. Her cloths were snagged and ripped as sharp sticks cut her soft flesh and leaves collected in her brown locks. She couldn't stop herself even if she wanted and had the energy to, the hill was at a steep slope and she only came to a halt when she came in contact with the trunk of a tree just barely out of the tree line before the dock.

As soon as she made contact with the tree, a loud crashing noise sounded right before the cries of birds and their flapping wings. She wouldn't be surprised if the whole island heard it but right now, just laying there with the comforting warmth of the sun kissing her pale face she wanted to sleep. But she knew she shouldn't. Not if she wanted to continue living. Not if she wanted to die on her own terms somewhere far away from this land.

As she stared up at the afternoon sky, she couldn't help but realize that the sky held no clouds, but instead was the bluest blue she has ever seen. She wanted more than anything to reach up and touch it. Oh how she begged her body to use its remaining strength to touch that beautiful blue only the Gods could mix together with a handful of happiness and a pinch of tranquility. But her body would not comply and it did not agree with her mind, with her mental will to fight any longer. She was tired and with every passing second breathing became harder and each heartbeat became heavy as it sang a song of woe one last time.

" _Shi, do you ever feel impossibly small?"_

" _Are you calling me short, Minette?"_

" _No. Like… it wouldn't make a difference if you weren't in the equation to begin with because the answer would be the same?"_

" _I always feel small."_

" _I'm not talking about height, Shi."_

" _And neither am I, Minette. I know I will never be big enough for everyone to see. I will always be impossibly small in this world."_

" _In this world?"_

" _Yeah. You know that feeling when you're laying in a meadow with the sun hitting your skin just right? The feeling is so surreal, right? Then it must be unearthly because in those moments I feel like the most important being in the whole universe."_

" _I don't think I understand your logic, Shi."_

" _You will when the time is right Minette. I promise."_

And now, as she lay there with no other choice but to let the sun kiss her skin, she finally understood what Shi was talking about. All at once Minette felt utterly alone, impossibly small, but the most important being in the world. There was no discomfort in these moments of absolute bliss. No hunger, no dizziness, no pain. Without her consent, her eyes closed for good but the image of the sky never went away behind her heavy lids, and she decided, then and there that it was her time. The fight was over. She tried her best to win the game of Life but everyone had to loose at one point, it was just how the game was. With her last role of the dice, she hoped for Snake Eyes.

 _Can I never wake up again?_

She suddenly felt like she was being lifted off of the ground and into an angel's warm embrace. She felt its warm hand rub against her cheek and she wanted more than anything to look into his eyes, but they were still heavy with the weight of eternal sleep on them.

 _Can I stop trying?_

The angel tapped her face gently to wake her. "No. No. Come on. Wake up." He tapped her face, shook her shoulders and despite her best attempts to open her eyes, she was unable to. Even in Death's embrace her body still refused to move.

"Come on... Come on! You can make it. I'm right here. The remedy to your pain is right here."

No. Something was wrong. The angel should not be sad, anger should not be lacing its tone. Had the dice not landed on double ones? Was she given an "Another Chance" card instead? Has she been robbed of her serenity? Were the dice fowl? This wasn't right!

At the mention of pain, hunger flared up again but worse than before. It felt like getting stabbed in the stomach over and over again without an end in sight. Pain in all of her tired limbs made itself know as well as she broke through the surface of death and finally opened her eyes. But her eyes were not met with the same Godly blue like before, no, it was grey and water splashed her face, running into her nose making her choke slightly before she could breath properly again.

It was raining. The sky was crying from her sudden near death experience, and coming to this conclusion - knowing that she was entirely willing to give in without a second thought just then - she started crying too.

"You're okay. You're okay now. Stop crying, you're okay." Having come back to her senses, she could hear the voice was male and feel him rocking her back and forth as she sat comfortably on his lap. In her hazy vision she could see pure blond hair as he pulled away from her and a soft smile painted on his face.

He wiped away her tears as she hiccuped before tilting her chin up. "There's food here. Just relax. Nothing can hurt you any longer." His voice was soft, reassuring as she continued to hiccup and sniffle even as he started feeding her a food so delicious it made her cry further.


	5. Chapter: 4

_As long as I have a want, I have a reason for living._

 _Satisfaction is death._

 _~George Bernard Shaw_

She was so small in his arms.

So little.

So fragale.

So vulnerable sleeping in his arms after finishing the meal he brought her. And as he held her small frame in his arms - his body subconsciously rocking her as she sat in his lap - he could see just what type of Hell she had gone through. Her black baggy pants ripped and tattered at the ankles, no shoes to cover her muddy and cut up bear feet. It seemed like her light grey hoodie was the only thing that actually gave her some type of warmth, but this did not mean it was without holes and loose strings here and there.

He also couldn't help but notice just how weightless she was. No heavier than sixty-four pounds, he could carry her weight on his shoulders an entire month if he had too. But realizing this fact did not make him the least bit amused. He was instantly in a state of melancholy. He knew what she suffered from, having suffered from it himself in the past.

Satavation.

It was evident in her weight, in her bony arms and legs. He could feel her spine, how her ribs extended out as she breathed unevenly in her deep slumber, see her hip bones poking through her black pants as they hung loosely from her slender waist. She had no fat left, barely enough muscle to fill out her face, she was just a sack made of human skin and brittle bones.

He sighed, having dropped his cigarette as soon as his once dull gaze landed on her still, small form. He stared down at her dirt tanned face. The streaks of tears that are long since dry were still visible, having washed away any dirt it ran into on its journey down her cheeks. He could tell big light grey eyes hide under heavy lids and long black lashes, having seen them a few seconds before they closed her into a deep slumber. He removed a lock of light brunette hair from her face as he continued his assessment of her. Her lips a pale pink in color. Small like her as they parted for more air. A petite nose. Thin eyebrows matching her hair in color. Tiny ears. Little hands. Small pink nails. Everything about her was so little, so small, so fragile. She was like a mouse.

When he heard the loud crash just a couple moments ago he did not expect such a small being to make such a large noise; but once his eyes landed on her still stature, he didn't have to look any longer as he knew exactly what was happening. How she tripped or what she was doing on top of the hill was of no concern when he arrived with food, but it seemed to be too late when he rushed to her side. She was already reaching out to shake the cold hand Death so graciously extended towards her. It was a miracle he was able to bring her back, make her retreat from His tempting promises of a peaceful rest in eternal sleep.

It was heart breaking to see her cry. It made him question if he should have just left her to decide if she wanted to continue living on this unforgiving planet. But as soon as he saw the sudden spark in her eyes from that first taste of food, he understood that she wasn't done with the Living just yet. She was willing to fight just a little while longer.

Picking her up, he left the plate and silverware in the tree line and made his way back to the ship. In this deep of a sleeping trance, he knew she would die if he left. She may never wake up and starve herself again, the many newly opened cuts on her feet could start an infection, or she could be eaten by whatever animal was chasing her. It was obvious by a single glance at her cut hands and feet that she has been running from something for a very long time and not just for a few days. Months, without an end, she continued to run.

But coming to this conclusion, he questioned what the Hell was on the island to make this small girl run without any source of energy for so long. Their navigator had described this island as a sort of "ruin city" with no humans or animals left to inhabit it; so if it wasn't animals this girl was running from, what was it? Was it so dangerous that it couldn't be labeled human nor animal? Was it a giant reptile or amphibian - no matter how stupid that sounds - it could happen. They did fight Fishmen not too long ago.

Boarding the ship, he made his way across the deck and towards the infirmary to disinfect the girl's cuts when another thought entered his mind: If the island was presumed to be over run by something so powerful as to wipe out all living things on the island, how did she survive?

About to open the infirmary door, he froze upon hearing a voice speak behind him.

"Who's that Sanji?"

Turning around, the male - Sanji - was met with the ship navigator - Nami - as she casually walked towards him with her gaze glued to the young girl in his arms. She probably returned because they haven't found anything on their hunt for fruit yet.

He could say something about how lovely she looked today or how heroic he was in saving this girl from starvation to try and make the female fall for him as he has for her, but this was serious. A little girl almost died today from starvation, he could not simply take this lightly.

"I don't know. I found her by the trees over there," he nodded his head in the direction and watched as the orange haired female turned to look before glancing back as he continued. "She was practically dead."

Walking forwards with her eyebrows knitted together, Nami stopped when she was fully in front of the unconscious girl in Sanji's arms. She searched her up and down, taking in her tiny appearance and cut up flesh on her feet. She reached a hand out to cup her dirt tanned cheek and tried to wipe away the tear trails with her thumb. She looked up to Sanji, who was staring down at the girl before them, she said, "What was she dying from? How did you convince her subconsciousness to stay?"

"Starvation. I was able to keep her awake long enough to practically shove food down her throat. But I'm afraid that it wasn't enough. I'm no doctor but by her lack of weight and all these cuts on her feet, I'd say she's been living off of nothing but the will to survive for a very long time."

As Sanji turned around and walked into the infirmary dorm, Nami followed with eyebrows knitted together again as so many new question raced through her mind. "But, this island was presumed to be abandoned a few months ago by the Marines and on the walk with the boys we didn't find any sign of life from any animal or fruit bearing plants. She should be long since dead."

Carefully laying her on the stiff bed, Sanji scanned through shelf after shelf for a disinfectant. After a few minutes of watching him struggle, Nami began to help and found the white wrapping tape, but not the disinfectant.

"Your guess is as good as mine. Right now I'm more concerned with the possibility that those cuts will get infected. She needs a bath and a deeper clean for her feet right after. Ah! Found it."

Nami stared at Sanji as he held the newly found disinfectant bottle close to his face, reading the label. "When did you become so caring for someone you can't hook up with?" She teased as she picked up the small girl and walked towards a connected bathroom. Like hell she was going to let a perv like him bathe this innocent girl.

"I didn't," Sanji snorted loud enough for Nami to hear his voice through the door. "I just can't help but to want to do something for her… She could be all by herself on this island and waiting for people like us to help her…"

With the water running to fill the tub, Nami frowned as she stripped the girl of her clothes, seeing pale scars all over her bony arms and legs, even some on her back and chest. Bruises showing a dark black and blue on her hip bones. She didn't bother answering Sanji back as she rolled up her sleeves and stopped the water halfway full. The girl was so small that if the water was too high she could drown. Gently placing her in, she sighed with relief when the water only reached just below her shoulders, happy she didn't have to waist clean water by draining some.

Instantly finding it difficult to wash the unconscious girl's hair, Nami stripped to her bathing suit underneath her clothes and sat behind her. Washing her waist long hair took a bit of work. There was so much of it, Nami had to rinse out and add in more shampoo to get out all of the mud and plant debris. Once she was done with the hair she put it into two buns on either side of her head and began to wash her body with a soapy wash cloth. She was careful not to scrub too hard as to not open any scabbed over cuts but hard enough to get a good majority of the mud off of her skin.

Turning her around, Nami cleaned her face with a new wash cloth and slightly smiled as the girl's naturally beautiful pale skin started to appear. She was finally able to see the freckles that dusted across one cheek, the bridge of her nose, and to the other cheek. Her long black eyelashes and healthy light pink lips. Her smile reached her eyes as she thought about this warm feeling in her heart. She wondered if this was how Bell-mère felt when she first saw her and Nojiko in a time of war. Nami was so happy that this small girl was still alive.

Lifting her out of the tub before she got out, Nami drained the water and dried off the girl with a clean towel before slipping her ripped clothes back on. It was a shame nothing of Nami's would fit the girl but if she is still here by tomorrow then Nami was sure none of the boys would mind loaning the girl a shirt as her clothes were being cleaned. That is, if she stays asleep through the disinfecting process Sanji is planning on putting her through.

Walking out of the room with the clean girl in her arms, Nami laid her on the bed and sighed. Knowing that this was not going to be a good awakening for the girl. Sanji sighed too as he put out his cigarette and walked forwards, looking at the girl's face. "It's going to be Hell watching a face like that in so much pain."

"Just… Just make it as quick as you can. I'll hold her down if she wakes up kicking."

"You mean when. Reading the label, this stuff is definitely going to sting."

Sighing, Nami climbed on top of the bed and sat the small girl up. She placed her on her lap and wrapped her small arms around her own chest and held her tight.

"Okay. Go for it," Nami winced, holding the girl tighter to her chest. She wasn't going to be able to restrain her legs, but she had no doubt that Sanji couldn't handle them.

Uncapping the brown bottle Sanji slowly tilted the bottle over the first foot and watched with uneasiness as the clear liquid came in contact with the skin. Almost instantly, there was a sizzling sound as acid met with raw flesh and Nami held her even tighter. It took a moment but the pain was suddenly so overwhelming and intolerable that the small girl's grey eyes snapped open and she screamed at the top of her lungs. She tried getting away from whatever was hurting her but something strong and seemingly unwilling to let go was wrapped around her upper body. She tried kicking her legs but the one that was unharmed was being sat on while the other was being held down by strong hands as someone wrapped that foot tightly with medical tape.

Swiftly, Sanji switched legs to sit on and held the bottle over the other foot and poured the liquid over it. Earning another loud and sharp scream from the small girl before she fell limp and went unconscious from the immense amount of pain. Tightly wrapping the other foot, Sanji and Nami panted as they loosened their hold. The deed was done. The small girl can rest in peace without the risk of infection or starvation.

And whatever she was running from, she was safe for now.


	6. Chapter: 5

_A good scare is worth more than good advice._

 _~Edgar Watson Howe_

" _Why can't we build a fire?"_

" _Because then they will find us, Shi. Think about it. They would see the smoke in seconds."_

" _But, it's so cold."_

" _It's summer."_

" _Doesn't mean anything. It's still cold Minette and without a coat I'll freeze. Please. Lets just build a fire. Just for a few minutes. A small one."_

" _Why do you insist on killing us?"_

" _Why do you insist we keep living? And for what? We have nothing else to live for. Think about that for a minute, Minette. No one is left…"_

" _You don't know that. You're delusional."_

" _No. Just suicidal."_

Gasping awake, Minette's eyes snapped open to find not the sky overhead but a dark brown wood ceiling. A dim stinging sensation all over her feet caused her to sit up and look towards the feeling, only to find her lower body covered by a heavy white bedding sheet. As she looked around, she felt two heavy balls of hair on either side of her head. Reaching up, she discovered that her hair had been pulled up into two buns.

Confusion swarmed her mind as to where she was and how she got here. Surely she wasn't dead otherwise there wouldn't be this odd pain, and she was no longer dreaming because her dreams normally consisted of awful memories of Shi or when the cannibal pirates first started their raid. She had to be somewhere else, a place she had yet to explore in reality, but where?

Pulling back the bed sheet, partially scared to find what lay beneath them, she found her dainty feet clean of dried dirt and blood and wrapped with a white tape. Memories suddenly started to flood her mind from the sight. She remembered advancing towards the new ship, tripping over a tree root, tumbling down a hill and giving up. She remembered that feeling of being entirely helpless and vulnerable yet happy before someone awoke her from her trance, fed her, and promised she would be alright.

Yes, she thought, that was it. The blond man from the ship is the same blond man I saw come to my rescue. He must've taken me aboard and cleaned my wounds.

Minette pondered on his generosity for a moment. How heroic he was to save a girl he didn't know. The very girl that was planning to steal or steal from his ship. But as she looked herself over, she couldn't help but realize that her feet were not the only things that were clean. Her exposed ankles were not tanned with dirt, and as she rolled up her pant legs she realized that both of her legs had no evidence of ever being outside without a bath in months. Starting to think the worst of her supposed 'hero', Minette grabbed the front of her shirt and pulled it away from her flat chest as her gaze landed on her naturally pale, clean skin. Not a speck of dirt in sight.

Instantly, Minette became horrified at the realization that he had bathed her. And though she could feel no other pain on her body other than her feet, she couldn't help but stress over what he could've done to her while she was unconscious. How long she was here, unconscious in this stranger's ship, was unknown but she no longer felt safe.

Swinging her legs over the edge of the bed, Minette feared for the harsh pain her feet were about to indore, but she was more afraid of what would happen if she were to stay dormant on the bed. She mustn't hesitate any further. Pushing herself off the bed, what felt like fiery, red hot embers were burning her feet instead of a somewhat frigid wood floor. The pain was so great and so sudden that Minette bit her lip - drawing blood - and clenched her eyes and fists tight in order not to scream. Tears threatened to spill over and all she wanted to do was rip off the wounded parts of herself that could not heal. She wanted nothing more than to submerge her feet in the iciest of waters, - not caring if hypothermia would find its way into her system - she wanted to sit back on the bed she awoke on and think of another way to escape. But there was no other solution that would bring her salvation.

Glancing about the room with glassy eyes, Minette searched for something, anything that would lessen the pain and at least help her stand without this amount of suffering. She needed something that would help significantly if running was an absolute must in the moments about to come.

Almost instantly, her gaze landed on a sink at the opposite end of the room that replaced tears with determination. Using the side of the bed as she hobbled, Minette couldn't help but let small whimpers of pain escaped her clasped teeth. Now at the far end of the bed, the counter only a few feet away, the small girl took a shaky step forwards. As weight shifted from back foot to front foot, she held her breath and immediately jumped onto the counter as soon as she was in reach. She was encouraged by the fact that no tears had shed despite the immense amount of agonizing pain she had to embrace in order to survive; but the pain was almost over. Whatever was causing her so much unnecessary trouble was about to be washed away then she could be free to run as far away as she could.

With her feet hanging over the side of the sink, Minette carefully unwrapped her feet, wincing every once in awhile when the tape was apart of the scab and partially reopened that wound. Once both of her feet were free, she could see that all of her wounds were scabbed over and mostly healed to the point that the scab could be scratch off and not bleed. The deeper ones still stung from the substance they were doused in, but as soon as the cool water from the sink hit her burning skin, a sharp inhale of breath caught in her lungs before a heavy sigh of relief was let out.

Whatever it was the blond man put on her feet had healed her wounds with great speed, but also irritated healthy skin to such an extent it felt like she was set on fire. Now with her feet under the running cold water - stealing a few sips from the stream every couple of minutes - she felt normal again. The skin on her feet naturally rough from never wearing shoes even before the raid, she felt just like her usual self.

After a few minutes of soaking her feet, she turned off the tap and quietly hopped down from the counter. Not making a single sound as she slowly made her way towards the only door in the room. She leaned her ear against it - the bun on the right side of her head also pressed to the door as she listened for any voices, footsteps, something that indicated people were outside and guarding the door. Much to her delight, she could hear nothing on the other side but she was still careful as she slowly turned the knob and gently pushed the door open.

Peeking out, she saw nothing that seemed out of the ordinary or unusual, but something about this ship was just not correct. To Minette, this did not hold the same scary, ominous feel a normal pirate ship usually held. It felt… happy almost. Like the atmosphere was light with sunshine, giddy with joy, and cheerful with a sense of belonging - not to mention the front of the ship had a smiling ram to greet other ships with just as much tender happiness as this ship held.

Stepping out, Minette made no noise. The door did not creek, the wood did not crack under her weight, and she dared not breathe too heavily. She knew not if the people from before were back on the ship or if the blond man was still here. But all thoughts of being cautious of the other beings were tossed aside when a small breeze carried heavenly smelling food to her petite nose and she could not hold back the suddenly strong need of gorging herself.

Quietly, silently - still cautious - the starved girl made her way towards the delicious smell, mouth watering profusely when she came to another door. Too short to see through the circular window, she pressed her ear against it. She could hear no one talking or shuffling about, only the sound of water boiling and meat sizzling in a hot, well oiled pan. Instantly she thanked the heavens for her sudden turn in luck as she slowly pushed opened the door a crack before slipping inside and shutting it behind her.

Leaning against the door, Minette felt faint with happiness at the sight before her. There were meats cooking, potatoes boiling, and minced vegetables on the counter behind a dining table with bananas, apples, oranges in a bowl in the center of the table. Before detaching herself from the door she looked around, to see if anyone was here to witness what she was about to do; but as she came to the conclusion that she was alone she rushed to the closest food item to her. The table with fruits. She snatched an apple - knowing she wouldn't have enough patience to peel a banana or orange - and took as big of a bite she could handle and melted into the sweetness, and juiciness of the apple. She moaned into the first few chews of the single piece of the apple and savored every texture, every flavor, every bit that single bite could offer before she took another big bite and repeated the moan of bliss. As she went for her third bite, she bit into the apple but did not tear the piece off. Instead she let it hang from her mouth as she packed more apples into her hoodie pocket, also grabbing a few bananas and oranges.

But she suddenly froze when the door behind her opened with a small creek and the sound of someone's footsteps coming to a stop in the doorway sounded.

Time seemed to stand still for a moment before Minette slowly turned around, apple still hanging in her mouth and an orange fell from her full pocket and rolled towards the blond man standing before her. A looked of shocked was obvious on the blond man's face. Curly eyebrows raised as he was frozen in mid step, ash falling from his cigarette in his closed mouth as they stared at each other. Minette questioned his clothes, why he was so nicely dressed on a pirate ship, but the thought was whisked away when the man's face contorted to one of slight anger.

"Oi, what are you-?"

Turning around sharply, Minette quickly crawled under the table, to the other side and grabbed a knife from the counter. She pointed it at the man and swiftly through it before he could finish his sentence. The knife cut through the fabric of his sleeve at the wrist and impaled the wall behind him. Being imbedded deep into the wall, Minette knew he was not going to be able to escape without ripping his clothing, and that nothing was going to be able to dislodge the knife.

Apple still in her mouth, Minette watched the man's face as he stared at the blade holding up his arm. Confusion and astonishment were evident before anger took place again but in a more aggressive display.

Eyebrows frowned, the man looked back to Minette, "You better get your sorry ass over here little girl and return Nami's oranges before I make you." Though his voice was threatening, Minette showed no indication that she feared him. After all, she wasn't the one stuck to a wall.

Slowly walking around the table, never breaking eye contact with the man, Minette walked up to the orange she had dropped in the doorway. She picked it up, examined it closely before looking back up at the man and shoving it into her already full pocket.

The man was now boiling with anger, one eyebrow twitching and bared teeth, the man seemed to growl before reaching into his pocket with his free hand and quickly revealing a knife before throwing it at Minette's face. The girl only clapped her hands together and had caught the blade before it could impale the apple in her mouth and sharply threw it back at him, piercing his other cuff and impaling the wood wall. Stuck.

As the man seemed to be at a loss for words, Minette walked around him, out of kicking distance and ran out of the room, across the deck and off of the ship before entering the forest and climbing a tall tree to have a feast, all without making a sound as the man yelled behind her.


	7. Chapter: 6

_It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another._

 _But above all, try something._

 _~Franklin D. Roosevelt_

Minette was having the feast of her life, though she did feel bad. As she ate the fruit she couldn't help but think of if that man really deserved to be pinned to the wall. Her first initial fear of the blond man was that he had done something bad in her sleep; but she had no proof of this. The only thing she could find was a bittersweet attempt at healing her wounded feet. He had brought her back to reality from a seemingly unwakeable dream. He had fed her the most heavenly food she has ever tasted. He was kind enough to request only the oranges back and nothing else that she had taken.

Perhaps, Minette thought, I have made a mistake.

Yes, he may have bathed her, but should she really find that so odd? She was a stranger boarding his ship, covered in mud, leaves in her messy hair, and dried blood on her tattered clothes. No, he hadn't done anything wrong, he was just trying to help.

Feeling guilty, Minette stared down at the half eaten orange in her hands. She had eaten everything else but the oranges because of how hard it was to peel; but now, looking at it, she didn't want to eat any of them. The blond man only seemed to care about the oranges…

Stuffing the rest of the orange in her pocket with the other four she had taken, she made her way down the tall tree. She was careful not to drop any of the delicious fruits or misplace a foot on a branch and brushed herself off once her bare feet were back on solid ground. She was not far from the ship. When she ran with the food she was afraid of going too far and being found by something else, so passing a few trees, she was out of the dense forest and graced with the presence of the joyce ship.

As she walked forwards, she dared not step on anything that would make a sound in fear that the blond man's friends have returned and she kept that quiet pace as she boarded the ship, quickly walked across the deck - feeling extremely exposed from the lack of trees and hiding places - and slowly opened the door the blond man was kept in.

Peeking in, she saw the man was still stuck in the spot she last saw him. She watched for a moment as he tried reaching his right foot towards the dinning table, trying to knock over the now empty bow that once held the fruits Minette has selfishly taken. Why the blond man found salvation in the bow was beyond her, but she mustn't dwell on the thought any further. She needed to correct the wrong she has committed.

Quietly stepping in, the door made a silent click as it shut behind her, making the blond man's head snap up and his eyes seemed to widen upon looking at her apologetic, concerned, and sheepish face.

Minette's heart was beating wildly in her chest, threatening to jump out of her ribcage. She was so nervous. This was the first time since Shi died that she ever tempted to talk to another person. She was always afraid of being heard by something hunting her.

Her hair still tied in the two buns as her hands were fidgeting in the long sleeves of the grey hoodie in front of her chest, the blond man couldn't help but chuckle despite his situation. With the cigarette hanging from his mouth, he said, "What's a little mouse like you doing on a ship like this? I thought you'd be far away from these docs as possible."

Minette ignored his comparision of her to a mouse and couldn't help but think about how this place, this spot right here, was probably the safest place in the whole world. Why would she want to run away?

Hesitantly, she walked away from the door and stood before the stuck blond man. She looked down to her lumpy hoodie pocket and reached in to retrieve the four whole oranges and the half eaten one. She held them in her dainty hands and glanced up at the man. His face held confusion as he looked at the oranges then at the girl.

Stuttering she said, "S-Sorry." Quickly she glanced back down at the oranges before trying to find a place to put them. Without making a sound, she turned around and placed them on the dining table before walking out, across the deck and off the ship. She climbed the same tree she ate the fruit in, but higher until she could see the ship.

Yes, Minette thought, this was perhaps the safest place for me to be.

The chef, Sanji, was stunned. Not only was he pinned to a wall and stolen from in a matter of minutes, but the same little girl to do it had returned what he had asked for. His first assumption of the girl was fragile, easily breakable; but he was wrong. She had excellent marksmanship and a fighting style all of her own. Yes, she was frail, but she could defend herself. She may be a mouse but even the cutest of mice bite and scratch. And when he caught her stealing food from him, he thought nothing of it. She was probably hungry and scared; two variables he knew all too well of. But just as he thought she would never return, she came back, returned the oranges and apologized in the sweetest, most softest voice he has ever heard. For what exactly she was apologizing for was a question he had no answer to, but now, still stuck and alone with his racing thoughts, he couldn't help but want to see her again. To make sure that she was alright, eating well, and sleeping soundly in this supposedly deserted island.

The door to the kitchen brought his thoughts away from him as it opened. He was half expecting to see the girl but it was the women he desired the most. Nami came into the room, a worried look graced her face as she rushed her words, "Sanji, the little girl is missing-!" only to stop herself as she fully took in Sanji's vulnerable state. Instantly at a loss for words.

Sighing, Sanji hung his head and looked to the floor, "I know." He couldn't believe how unmasculine he was about to sound after confessing who had done this to him.

"W-What happened," Nami stammered, frozen in the doorway. "Where's the… Where did she go?"

Sanji could see the tears starting to weld in Nami's hazel eyes, could see the pain as Nami started to think the worst; that other pirates had found the ship, took the girl and in the fight to defend her, Sanji was knifed to the wall.

"Nami, before you jump to any assumptions, the girl woke up a few hours later while you were starting the chart on the island. I don't know how, but she was the one to put me here."

"What? H-How is that even possible?"

"I don't know."

"What-?... How-?... Did she steal anything?"

"The fruits that were on the table."

Glancing towards the table, Nami found everything gone except for the oranges. Pointing to the half eaten one, she said, "Why didn't she finish?"

"I don't know, but after a few minutes of being off of the ship and eating the fruit somewhere, she came back and returned the oranges, said sorry, then left again."

At a loss for words, everything was quiet. Both mulling over the situation and how to get the chef off of the wall without ripping his clothes when the kitchen door suddenly burst open with Luffy, Ussop, and Zoro marching in, only to stop upon seeing the situation before them.

The silence was deafening until Ussop suddenly pointed at the pair and started yelling, "You're going to ruin the food if you do that kind of thing in here!"

"WHAT?!" Sanji yelled back, "This isn't some type of sexual scenario!"

"Then, what _is_ happening here?" Luffy asked, confusion written all over his face as Zoro examined the knives.

"Who ever threw them was strong. A little more than half of the blade is imbedded into the wall," Zoro stated before tugging at the knife handle and pulling it from the wall.

"There's someone that powerful on this island?!" Ussop screamed, hands on his head as he tried to keep it somewhat together.

"No," Nami sighed, "At least when we saw her she didn't look like she was."

"She?" Luffy questioned. The sound of the second knife being pulled from the wall by Zoro created a hollow _dunk_ before Nami continued.

"A little girl too. Sanji found her by the trees, fed her, then brought her a board to disinfect some gashes on her feet. I was in the charting room when I found Sanji like this."

"We found nothing on our walk. Just a bit of village ruins, but no people. It's deserted," Zoro commented.

"But if the island is deserted," Ussop said, "then why is she still here? Was she left behind?"

"No," Luffy answered. "Something else is on this island that isn't just the little girl."

"How can you tell?" Nami asked.

"I don't know, but something about this island is off. A full village just doesn't disappear or sail away without a child. Something isn't right."

"Then what should we do?" Sanji asked.

"We can't do anything."

"What?!" The chef yelled. "We can't just leave her here either!"

"The cook's right. We can't leave knowing she's all by herself on this island," Zoro sighed. He couldn't argue with the chef on that.

"Then we'll stay until Nami's chart is finished. If we can't find her or she doesn't come out by then, then we have no other reason to stay if she doesn't want to be found."

As everyone grew quiet, Ussop left to work on his targeting, Zoro left to nap on the deck, and Nami went back to charting while Luffy gave Sanji company as he watched the chef cook.

"Hey, Sanji," Luffy said.

"Yeah?"

"How did she get two knifes if you were against that wall?" he asked, pointing to the wall to the right of the doorway. It was an odd angle to throw a knife but the girl did it.

"She got the first knife from the counter."

"And the second?"

"...I threw it at her and she caught it before throwing it back."

Luffy started at the two slits in the wall with amazement. The fact that the small girl was able to take down one of the crew's strongest fighters was something to get excited about. And he suddenly grew anxious to meet her and ask her to join them on their adventure to find the One Piece.


	8. Chapter: 7

_Nothing gives one person so great advantage over another as to remain always cool and unruffled under all circumstances._

 _~Thomas Jefferson_

It was dark, cold, and just starting to rain but she did not fear the night nor what could be lurking about below her. How could she? Her salvation was right in front of her, waiting for her to return so it could engulf her in its naturally friendly atmosphere and make her feel safe.

Minette had never known the feeling of safe before so she couldn't help but want to feel it all the time. She couldn't remember the last time that she actually felt this way, it was such a long time ago that she couldn't remember a thing. She knew that at one point Shi and her both had loving parents but they were gone in a matter of seconds with no explanation. Nothing but ash was left of them as fire ate away at their flesh, at their hopes and dreams.

When they were younger, the twins had asked the villagers about what had happened to their parents, why their house, all their belongings, and their only family were suddenly gone. They said that a fire from the kitchen was at fault, that the stove was left on with a wash rag close by, but even though they knew, no one did anything to help the now orphaned girls.

They learned to live alone, going without money to buy food or water while no one cared enough to give them a free hand out. No one in their village was charitable. This made them unable to tolerate other people. They both couldn't tolerate being touched or being loved by anyone else but their twin. They could only trust each other now.

They could only trust the face that they both shared, only trust the one mind that they both had, only trust the one person who was always there…

They taught themselves how to survive without the proper amount of food that growing children needed. They taught themselves how to hunt, how to look for edible berries, how to pick up animal trails. They're favorite pass time was either target practice or having their own little "knife fight" with sticks instead. They would have competitions on who could steal the most valuable item from a single home, who could climb the tallest tree the fastest, who could get to the other side of the island first.

They were used to living and surviving on their own before the cannibals came and ruined the village, before everything was burned in the chaotic fires of Hell. When they came, it wasn't a big change to them. They had already lost everything and already new their way around the forest, knew all the best spots for fish and barries, knew where freshwater puddles were and where saltwater fell from the sky. The only thing that changed was that when they stole supplies from the village, it was no longer jail time they were going to be faced against if they got caught, it was inevitable death.

They learned how to conceal their existence all together. To walk on rocks instead of mud or crunchy leaves. To avoid rubbing against too many bushes or trees. To always be light on their feet incase oncoming danger called for them to run or if someone was listening for them in the most darkest parts of the night. To never stay in one place for more than one night.

They learned to survive the unsurvivable, yet, only one still has the chance to make it out alive.

Minette was the only one who remembers how everything was before the raid and is the only one still willing to struggle against the tight grip Death had on her ankle.

A twig snapping below her caught her attention, eyes trained to pierce through the darkness, Minette could see the outline of a person unfamiliar to her. As she studied him, she took notice that he did not belong to the ship docked at this end of the island, he was one of the cannibals.

Suddenly panicked, Minette rushed to find something, anything to steer him off of this trail. If he were to go any further in the direction he is heading, he would find the edge of the forest, and the small dock, and then her hopes of getting out of here alive. Even if he didn't kill them tonight, he was sure to tell his captain about the mary ship and crew, and as much as she hates to admit it, they would be dead by noon tomorrow.

Quickly, she picked up the only thing she was certain she could through far enough and still have the man below her hear it land, a pinecone. Chucking it in the complete opposite direction of the docks, Minette watched as the man below her suddenly stopped his slow advance to listen as the sound of the pinecone hitting a bush a couple yards away clamored over the nosey rain. Then he quietly turned around and went back in the direction he came, completely oblivious to the fact that she and potential enemies were right in front of him.

Minette sighed with relief, happy that she should have nothing more to disturb her during this drizzling night, but she was still not able to sleep. She knew that it was useless to even try because if she did end up falling into a world of dreams, she would be jolted awake by a nightmare a few hours later. So she sat in her tree, watching the ocean waves great the shore with a gentle wash before she looked to the ship to see a few smiling faces through a window as they laughed at something, totally care free and vulnerable.

A small smile pulled at her lips as she watched the blond man's grin suddenly turn into a huge fit of laughter she couldn't hear but yearned to be apart of.

Minette watched as the sun rose over the horizon, turning the sky a light shade of pink and orange as the calm currents of the ocean reflected it beauty. Damp from the previous night, Minette took out the two buns and ringed out her messy hair, occasionally shaking it out and running her fingers through the tangled locks until she gave up on trying to tame it. She stretched her arms and flexed her toes as a yawn escaped her lips. She could feel the heavy weight of sleep on her eyelids but shook it off, there was no need for sleep just yet.

Climbing higher, Minette peared towards the ship with the strawhat sail and felt a smile pull at her lips as she realized it was still there, waiting for her to board. There was no one on deck and she could see no one through any of the slightly darkened windows from the lack of light in the room, but that did not mean everyone was still asleep.

On land, just stepping off of the dock, the man with the three swords at his hip and green hair was stretching. His arms over his head as his mouth hung open in a yawn. As he relaxed his tense muscles, he lowered his arms back to his sides and peered towards the forest. He seemed to be scanning the trees for something when he stopped craning his head and Minette froze upon feeling his emotionless stare on her face. He was looking straight at her.

Gasping from being caught spying, Minette ducked back into the cover of the tree leaves. Staring at the forest floor way below her, she questioned if she was just being paranoid. That he didn't really see her and instead was staring at the scenery behind her. After all, how could he possibly see her from that far away? It wasn't like he could sense her presence. Right? Peeking her head up, she saw the man still standing there, looking in her direction. She stayed low as she watched him raise his hand and proceeded to… wave at her. Blinking in surprise, she lifted her hand and waved slightly.

After waving back, the man looked down at his shoes and started walking towards the forest entrance, towards her. She ducked back down, leaning against the thick trunk of the tree for support as her heart raced and hammered in her chest just like yesterday. She was so nervous of talking or even standing in this man's presence. She felt so exposed at this moment, so vulnerable. It was as if she was running from the cannibals all over again, she was so scared and so nervous.

"Oi."

Looking down, Minette saw the man standing below her, his head resting back on his shoulders in order for him to look at her. Her blood suddenly ran cold as she stared back at him. She didn't know what to do, socializing was never her strong suit and she was so shocked that he had found her in the first place froze her on the spot.

"Look kid, I know you're up there. There's no point in trying to be quiet anymore," the man called up and Minette stiffened even more. After a few minutes of silence, she watched as the man held up a light brown sack. "I brought some apples."

At the mention of the food, her stomach growled and chewed at her sides. She accidentally let out a small whine of pain and held her stomach. She was hungry despite having a few apples and bananas yesterday but could she really trust this man?

Almost as if he read her thoughts, the man said, "I'm not going to hurt you and there's nothing wrong with the apples. Just come down here and eat before I change my mind about feeding you."

Unable to resist any longer, Minette started a slow, cautious climb down and stopped on a branch just a few feet above the man to climb back up the tree if he lied about not wanting to harm her. Her feet dangling below her small body and arms wrapped around the trunk of the tree, she stared at the man and got a better look at him. His skin was well tanned, - which contrasted nicely with his green hair - eyes as black as cole held no emotion as his face was set on a board expression.

While she studied him, he took in her appearance as well and she was just like how Nami and Sanji described her:small. Everything about the girl - with the exception of her big grey eyes - was tiny. Her clothes were too big for her slender frame that they were barely being held up with a string tied around her waist. She was such a dainty thing, he was having a hard time believing that she was the one to pin the chef to the wall as the story goes.

Reaching the bag higher over his head and towards the small girl, she was careful not to loose her balance as she reached for the sack and slowly took it from the man. Letting go of the tree trunk entirely, Minette dug into the sack and pulled out an apple as promised. About to take a bite, her gaze landed on the man as he just stared up at her. Looking back to the apple, she lowered it towards the man, offering the juicy fruit to him despite her stomach's pleas for her to just be selfish and eat.

The man looked at the apple before bluntly saying, "I don't like sweet things."

Hesitating, Minette brought it back to her before digging in, taking the biggest bite she could - which wasn't all that big - and chewed the juicy fruit. Her eyes closed all on their own and a hum of bliss came from her throat as she leaned against the tree trunk.

The man sat, leaning against the tree opposite to hers as he watched her eat, nothing swarming his brain. They both just sat there and enjoyed the other's company. Minette, being happy that she was too occupied with eating to hold a conversation - and with the fact that he didn't make her sit on the dirt with him - and the man was please that she trusted him enough to come down and eat in front of him and he didn't have any questions for her that needed to be answered right away.

Building her trust through food was probably the most important thing he could do for a girl such as herself; and if Luffy is right about there being something bad on this island, then he wants a greater motivation to protect her other than she is in need of help. Though, he has no doubt that the captain will take her in, anyway. He could just feel the stupid ideas rolling off of him sometimes.

When Minette was finished with the five apples it was around the time where everyone should be waking up. Standing on the branch, she chucked the cores in the opposite direction of the dock and as far away from her tree incase any of the cannibals came by again. Then she looked down at the man, who still stared at her and tossed him the empty sack. Catching it, the man stood, dusted himself off and turned to leave.

"U-Um." Minette's quiet voice stopped the man and made him look over his shoulder. He didn't say anything, encouraging the small girl to continue. "Th-Thank you."

It was quiet as the man seemed to think about something before answering back, "Roronoa Zoro, but everyone else just calls me Zoro."

Instantly becoming shy with her heart hammering in her chest again, Minette hurried up the tree. That was enough excitement for one day, she thought.


	9. Chapter: 8

_With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts._

 _~Eleanor Roosevelt_

The next day, Minette was not expecting Zoro to return with more apples. She had been so scared of the man who was so generous enough to give her something to eat that she had been impolite. Not sharing a single word as she scoffed down and savored all of the five apples. Yes, she had offered one, but she still felt guilty for eating in front of him as he just watched.

The board expression on Zoro's face gave away no emotion the entire morning. Making it hard to tell if he was actually okay with her eating all of the ship's apples. He was a suspicious character indeed, but as he promised, he did not try to hurt her nor poison her as she found out a few hours later when he left. He was just being kind for a reason Minette could not understand.

Shouldn't he not want to come back after she had pinned the blond man to the wall the other day? Shouldn't all of the crewmen be searching for her, cursing her in their heads and damning her to Hell for doing such a humiliating thing to one of their own? They have all the right to be furious and murderous - after all, they were pirates - so wouldn't they want to see her suffer?

Throughout the night of the day she was graced with Zoro's gift of apples, Minette was sure he wasn't coming back because of those things; and come next sunrise, she saw no sight of him. There was no one standing on land, just a few feet from the dock. No one stretching and yawning. No one scanning the trees and waving to her once she was spotted. There was none of that.

Coming to the realization that Zoro was not coming back set the small girl's heart aching. She always knew that the game of Life was meant to be played alone. She always knew that whoever was next to step into her life and made her care for them or look forward in their return would disappear like everyone else.

Spiralling into a forgotten depression despite the warm sunrise, Minette's heart ached even more. She shouldn't have taken those apples yesterday, she shouldn't have even climbed down her tree to greet the stranger because deep in her heart, she knew that it would only bring pain latter on. At least she was able to let go of that pointless hope she subconsciously developed yesterday easily because it was so small. That little light of hope she had unknowingly developed was so small, fragile, and breakable - just like her. She was a fool to want to keep its warmth.

"Oi."

Minette froze, the sudden voice startling away her darkened thoughts and she could feel that small shimmer of hope warm her heart little by little once she started to comprehend the voice. But she didn't want to believe it, she didn't want the hope to grow and blossom into a beautiful flower only to be stepped on latter. Perhaps if she stayed where she was he would go away in realization that she wasn't going to come down.

After a moment of no response, Minette heard Zoro sigh but not the light footsteps of retreat. Instead, she looked down to see him sitting under her tree, the light brown sack from before lumpy with more food resting by his side. She felt her eyebrows knit together in confusion as she watched him cross his arms behind his head and stared through the forest.

It was silent between the pair as she watched him examine the area. Breaking the still silence, Zoro said, "I can't hear anything. You still alive up there?"

She gave no response. Why wasn't he going away - she wasn't going to come down. Just give up, she thought, it's useless to try and get close to me, I know your game. Please just leave before I get hurt again.

Just like before, it was as if he had read her mind. "We're not going to leave you behind on this island, you know. We may be pirates, but we aren't going to let a small girl defend herself all on her own on this island." Zoro snorted before continuing, "Nami wouldn't allow it, and the captain… well, he's excited to meet you."

Minette gave no reply as she thought about his words and she suddenly became frightened. Upon first seeing the small crew, Minette had assumed that Zoro was the captain because he looked the part but now she hadn't had a clue as to who he was. It could be anyone of the boys.

"But," Zoro said catching Minette's attention, "there is something else on this island, isn't there? Something ruthless and big enough to demolish an entire village, even drive away the birds."

Sighing, Minette climbed down, giving up in seeing that he wasn't going to leave and that there was no point in putting his trip to waste. She knew how this was going to end for them, a brutal and ruthless beating before inevitable death by sharp teeth ripping flesh from bones.

Once she was sitting on the lowest branch - just a foot over Zoro's head - Minette sighed, "N-No," her small voice cracking from misuse. It being so light, Zoro had to strain his ears to hear it. "N-Not drive out. Eat."

Zoro looked up at her from the statement, his eyebrows knitted together in confusion as he looked up at her. "It ate all of the birds?"

She nodded.

"And the villagers? Where did they go? They had to have left, right?"

She shook her head, "Eaten."

Remembering the sack of food when her stomach gave a growl, he handed it to her and she quickly dug out an apple before biting in. Zoro watched her eat the apple slower than yesterday but still at a faster pace than normal. With his face turning to one of deep curiosity, he said, "What is on this island eating everything?"

Swallowing, Minette hesitated on taking another bite, not looking at him as her heart started to pick up pace again, she said quietly, "P-Pirates…"

It was quiet again and before Zoro could ask anymore questions, Minette grew anxious, "Th-that's why you n-need to go. I-If they found you a-and your crew, you'll be eaten. Go now."

It was quiet again as Zoro thought, but then he chuckled, catching Minette's full attention and crossed his hands behind his head again. "No way, Shrimp."

"B-But-"

"Now that I know that there is a real threat on this island, the whole crew will want to fight. If there's a challenge we won't run away, we'll fight and grow stronger. That's just the type of pirates we are. Plus, what did I say before?" He glanced up at her with a smile, her face full of surprise as he said, "We aren't leaving this island without you, got it?"

It was nightfall.

Zoro had returned to the ship after Minette was finished with the apples but had kept the orange he had unknowingly grabbed as well. She didn't want to eat the orange remembering how the blond man had seemed to be attracted to them somehow. And so she held on to it, starting down at the orange fruit that seemed to be almost too big for her hands.

Oranges were Shi's favorite food. She used to steal them from the village's local market whenever they were heavily in stock and wouldn't mind if one or two were missing; but Minette never understood why oranges were so special to her younger twin.

" _What is it about oranges that you just can't get enough of, Shi?"_

" _It's not what I like most, Minette. It's what the orange gives me."_

" _And what does the orange give? Relief from hunger?"_

" _No. It gives me a happy memory whenever I eat it."_

" _What does it make you remember?"_

" _You, Minette."_

" _What?"_

" _On the outside you are tough and strong. Upon first meeting you, people think you are a juvenile almost instantly. But when someone peals back that layer, they find that you are more unique from any other fruit, you have many different sections of yourself that you choose to show people if they've become close to you. Then, once you have been stripped of your sections, there is nothing left but a tiny seed. So defenceless now that your peal and sections are gone, you can't help but want to push everyone else away in fear they will just hurt you in the end. Are you starting to understand now, Minette?"_

" _Are you calling me weak, Shi?"_

" _Ah, I see you still haven't shed your peal yet."_

" _What is that supposed to mean?"_

" _Nothing, Minette. The orange means nothing."_

But now, being without her thoughtful twin, Minette was finally starting to understand. She was exactly how Shi had described her to be, and along the way without her sister, Minette had somehow lost her peel. It was probably snagged on a place Minette could not go back to, making her layers exposed. Upon first glance from strangers, she was no longer seen as a juvenile but as the small little girl she really was, though, she was not entirely defenceless without her peal.

She was sad to admit, but some of her sections were also lost in a place she could not return to as well. She had lost a good majority of her instinct to fight instead of flight, she had lost all of her confidence, and almost all of her childish spirit. Now, all she was left with was the sections of herself that were never going to leave - the sections that were obvious and not at all hidden from others - scared, nervous, curious, sheepish, lost, and thoughtful.

Shi was right, Minette thought, I am an orange above all things. The one word that does not rhyme with anything but has the sweetest taste of all.

She wasn't thinking a few days ago when she had taken those oranges before pinning the blond man, the memory just never surfaced until now and she couldn't help but wonder why that was. Could it be because she was starting to regain hope? Could it be because Zoro had given it to her without knowing he had grabbed it? Or was it because nothing else was clouding her mind other than why she didn't devour the orange when she retrieved it out of the sack.

Whatever the reasoning, Minette's mind immediately went blank and her blood ran cold from hearing something snap below her. It wasn't anyone from the ship in front of her because she had watched them settle in for the night a few hours ago and because it was coming from the opposite direction. Looking down, she saw the same cannibal pirate from the night before. She went to grab another pinecone when she almost lost her balance on the branch and had to quickly wrap her arms around the tree trunk not to fall. But not falling came with a price.

The orange had slipped from her hand and fell straight down, bouncing on the pirate's head before crashing onto the forest floor.

Minette's heart sped up with terror as she watched the man slowly glance up and when he saw her, a huge smile flashing his sharp teeth spread across his face.

"I finally found you." The pirate's voice was deep and rough as he reached behind his back. Minette was too scared to move despite watching the man retrieve a pistol from his waistband and point it at her. "There's nowhere left to run when I have this," he chuckled as Minette started hyperventilating. Her mind was racing for an answer, a solution to get her out of the situation, but she could find none. Sitting in a tree and being held at gunpoint gave her no outlet to escape. She was target practice now.

He gave no other words as he cocked back the hammer and wasted no time in trying to shoot her down. Hearing the loud gunshot and a sudden pain in her right leg, Minette was so startled she fell from the tree, crashing into other branches, getting small cuts on her exposed face and neck as sharp sticks poked and scratched her. The air was knocked out of her lungs with a hard landing to the forest floor. A harsh _thud_ sounded as she landed and started wheezing, trying to get the air back in its rightful place in her body but soon felt strong hands wrap around her slender neck.

As the hands gripped her throat tighter and tighter, Minette's head was under such a strong amount of pressure, she felt like all of the veins in her head and eyes were going to pop at any moment. She was going to die starting up the smiling pirate strangling her.

Through her muddled mind, she could still hear the pirate speaking to her. "My captain's been looking everywhere for you, Little Girl, but I'll have to say, hiding in the trees all this time was a good touch. How long has it been - a year we've been searching for you and now I finally get to bring you in. Oh, how happy the captain will be when he sees an exiled pirate has finally caught you in order for me to return to my rightful post."

Minette, gasping for breath and clawing at his hands, came to a stunning realization that no one knew what this pirate was doing right now or cared where he was on the island. She could fight him without the fear of anyone missing and going to search for him. A new light of hope sparked in Minette's eyes as she quickly ripped one hand away from the man, grabbed the first thing she felt on the ground beside her and bashed it against his head with as much force and with as much strength she could muster. But even when the man was rendered unconscious from the blow, Minette couldn't stop herself from straddling his chest and bashing the object into his head over and over again. She couldn't see through the tears that suddenly sprung to her eyes, but she could feel the warm blood getting flung onto her face and clothes from her violent attack; though, even then, she didn't stop. Thoughts of Shi raced through her mind, of her death and how her angered and frustrated feelings towards it were suddenly taken out on the man below her.

Crying and out of breath, Minette stopped her movements and looked at the man below her. If she could even call him that anymore. His face was not a face anymore. It was a pool of brainmatter, blood, and crushed bone fragments embedded into the ground. Looking at the weapon in her hands, she found that it was just heavy chunk of wood, blood and bone sticking out of the bark.

Realizing what she had just done, Minette leaned over the side of the body and threw up. Never has she seen such a horrid sight in her life and she was even more horrified that she had the strength to do this to another human being. Sure, it was out of self defence but her own rage mixed with anger and fear is what caused her to kill him.

Sniffling, she stood and stared down at the faceless body. She can't just leave him here to rot. Zoro would find him in the morning and not ever want to see her again and she can't barry him anywhere on the island because she didn't have enough time before sunrise to make the hole big enough. There was only one option.

Knowing the man was nothing more than dead weight, making dragging him to his final resting place impossible, Minette rolled him towards the docks, hopping none of the crew members from the ship she wants so badly to escape with do not see her push the body into the deep water.

Standing straight, Minette panted heavily, still recovering from being strangled and slowly made her way back to her tree. A sharp pain in her leg from being shot in the calf becoming stronger and stronger with each passing second, but the bullet only grazed her making it not life threatening.

After burying the brain goo, blood, and shards of skull, Minette was too weak and too tired to climb back up the tree and just fell to the dirt. Too tired to stand any longer and blacked out. She was unconcerned about the nightmare to come and more with the fact that Zoro may come in the hours of sunrise again and find her like this.

At least he would not see the damage she conflicted upon the attacker…


	10. Chapter: 9

_What man is strong enough to reject the possibility of hope?_

 _~Paul Auster_

Zoro woke up knowing something was wrong, terribly wrong.

Looking through the window he found the sun just making it over the horizon, the normal time he woke up and went out to feed the little girl in the tree; but as he went through his normal routine of strapping on his belt and snatching a few apples from the kitchen before making his way off the ship, he knew something was not right.

Stepping off of the dock, he did not care to stretch as his eyes were already scanning the trees for her, but she wasn't there. Over the last couple of days, even while she was trying to hide from him, he could always see her outline in the tree; but not today.

As he walked into the forest he tried making up reasons why she wasn't in her tree today. Maybe she moved, maybe she just went for a walk, maybe she was already down and waiting for him as she rested on her usual branch she sat on whenever he came. None of those comforted him, though. He knew deep down that something was different compared to the other times that he visited; just the fact that she wasn't in her tree was different enough to make him worry.

Glancing up from the dirt path, he froze. There, under the tree, was the girl. Limp, unmoving, seemingly unbreathing as well. She did not look asleep as she lay on her side, facing away from him. She looked dead…

Dropping the sack of apples, Zoro rushed to her side and pulled on her shoulder to lay her flat on her back, but he retreated his hand when he felt the sticky substance drenching her hoodie. He looked to his hand and panicked at the sight of blood. He reached his hand out again and pushed her on her back, freezing when he saw many little cuts on her face, a large bruise ringing all the way around her neck, and a gash in the side of her calf all the while blood was everywhere.

"Hey," Zoro said, shaking her shoulders. "Hey," he said again, shaking her a little rougher. "It's time to wake up." He was growing panicked as he patted her face gently. He was just starting to understand, just starting to look forward to being in her company every morning. He enjoyed the peaceful silence they shared and wanted to continue their sunrise meals, she can't leave just yet.

Picking her up, Zoro left the sack of apples as he ran towards the ship, the girl's head against his chest as her arm swayed lifelessly below her. He looked down at her, clenched his teeth and ran faster, "You're not leaving the island this way, remember? You're coming with us after I kill all of those cannibalistic bastards."

Running on the dock and jumping back aboard the ship, Zoro raced to the infirmary room before laying her on the bed and raced back out and down to the boys dorm. Upon entering, Zoro found Luffy practically falling out of the top hammock while Ussop dreamed unknowingly on the bottom one as Sanji slept on the futon. Without any concern for his friends, Zoro clapped his hands loudly and started yelling, "Look alive, men! Time to wake up!" Luffy fell off of his hammock and landed on Ussop one hammock lower while Sanji fell to the floor.

"The Hell you doing, Idiot! It's-!"

"She's hurt! Come on!" Zoro yelled as he ran down the hall and banged on Nami's door, demanding her to wake up before racing back to the infirmary. The girl was still unconscious on the stiff bed and made him worry.

"What's going on?" Nami asked.

"Zoro's gone bezerk!" Ussop yelled as everyone raced to catch up with Zoro in the infirmary. When they arrived in the doorway they all froze from seeing a small girl on the bed, bloody and unconscious as Zoro was raiding the cabinets for something to stop the bleeding in the gash on her leg.

Nami and Sanji were at a loss of words to see the girl in an even worse state than what they first found her in as Luffy stepped forward and said, "Who is this?"

Sanji smacked his head, "You Dunce! This is the girl that pinned me, remember!"

"This little girl? Are you sure?" Ussop asked and Zoro growled in frustration.

"Does it matter right now? She's hurt."

Nami stepped forward, "Zoro's right, it doesn't matter who she is. We'll get her better then get questions later. Now everyone out!" Kicking out all of the boys and slamming the door behind her, Nami turned around and looked at the girl. She examined all of her cuts and bruises and the gash in her leg before making a decision to give her another bath to wash out all the blood and smaller cuts then disinfect the gash right after.

Outside of the door, sitting about on the deck, Zoro was being interrogated.

"How did you find her?" Sanji demanded suddenly. Over the past couple of days everyone had been trying to find her in those woods and hadn't gotten anywhere close.

"I found her three days ago sitting in a tree. She was watching our ship."

"You found her three days ago and didn't bother to tell us about it?!" Sanji blew a fuse. If Zoro had brought her in on the first day then this wouldn't have happened.

"She didn't trust me so what makes you think she could trust a crowd? After seeing what she did to you when she got scared, I wanted to stay on her good side."

"So that's where you've been going every morning," Luffy thought and Ussop turned to look at him.

"You knew?!"

"No. But is it really the girl from before?"

"Yes," Sanji confirmed, blowing out cigarette smoke before continuing, "She's the only little girl left on this island. She's the only anything left on this island. No other animals are here except for her."

"No," Zoro shook his head, crossing his arms, "The other day we were talking about this. There are other pirates on the island. Nasty ones. And by the looked of it, she fought one of them last night."

"So… her new wounds? And all that blood?" Ussop mumbled.

"The wound on her leg is the only thing that can cause some damage and bleed heavily but it's not life threatening nor would it create that much blood and all over the place," Zoro answered.

"She must've been shot," Sanji thought out loud, "and fell from the tree, but how is she still alive? The attacker would've finished her off while she was down." Sanji thought about it for another minute before looking back to Zoro, "Was there a body anywhere when you found her?"

"No." Zoro sighed. "No body, no blood anywhere except for on her clothes. So..."

"So there's no possible way of knowing what happened until she wakes up…" Sanji finished.

"That's right," Zoro nodded then looked to Luffy, "You've been oddly quiet."

"Yeah," Ussop turned to him, "What's on your mind?"

"You said that you found her high in a tree?" Luffy asked and Zoro looked at him oddly.

"Yeah."

"We always needed a look out," Luffy smiled, already thinking the small girl as apart of the crew. She was a strong fighter and kept fighting despite having no hope left. She was perfect for the Straw Hat Pirates.

" _Why would you try and fight them, Minette? It's much safer to hide."_

" _I had to do something, Shi. They were going to kill that little boy right in front of us."_

" _But all these bruises just to save a small boy?"_

" _He's still alive, isn't he?"_

" _Yes, but for how much longer before they try to get him again?"_

" _Then he'll just have to stick with us."_

" _Are you trying to disappear before I do, Minette?"_

" _No. No one's going to disappear anymore. I'll save them, all of them._

" _You keep saying that Minette, but all I see you doing is trying to get yourself killed."_

Waking with a gasp - making pain lick her neck - Minette could see she was no longer in the forest, but back in the room she awoke in a few days ago, only she wasn't alone this time. She could feel her small body being held closely to another as she sat in their lap. The person seemed to be rocking her back and forth and rubbing her back before they realized that Minette was awake.

"Sh. Sh. You're okay. It was just a bad dream."

The voice was feminine, hushed, and calming; as if she were speaking to her own daughter and held her tighter against her chest. Minette could feel her hair was back up in the twin buns and slightly damp. She glanced down only to realize that her neck's movements were restrained by a thin layer of medical tape but that could not stop her from seeing her right calf was heavily padded where the gash once was and was wrapped with familiar white tape. Her bloody and tattered hoodie and pants could not be found anywhere in the room, but the women did not let her sleep naked. She was now wearing a button up shirt that had blue and white stripes and was way too big for her.

Glancing up, she saw the only women from this ship smiling kindly down at her. Her short orange hair being tucked behind her ears and her warm hazel eyes gave Minette the impression that she really was a mother, though, looked too young to actually be one.

"I'm Nami," the women said, a smile still painted her kind face. Minette didn't know what to do. She hadn't ever actually touched another human being in tranquil circumstances like this before. Even with Shi, physical contact between the pair was always limited.

Looking back at the shirt she was wearing, Nami seemed to giggle at the girl's obvious sheepishness towards her. "Don't worry," Nami said, "I washed them and should be waiting for you in the other room. Are you feeling well enough to get dressed just yet or do you want some more rest?"

Hesitantly, Minette started moving to get up and with the gentle help of Nami the little girl was standing and making her way towards the door the kind woman said her clothes were in. Her feet made no sound as she walked into the room, but she was sure that Nami could hear her heart banging roughly against her rib cage. She was so nervous to actually be aboard the very ship that saved her life on more than one occasion and served as her protected sanctuary from all the monsters this island has shown to her. As she dressed, she wished more than anything that the ship had already set sail and was as far away from the island as it could be but remembering the conversation with Zoro the other day, she knew that they were not leaving without fighting something.

Stepping out of the room with her usual oversized hoodie and baggy tattered black pants, Minette stayed in the doorway, fiddling with the sleeve of her hoodie before she was offered a hand. Looking up, she saw Nami's smiling face.

"Come on. The boys will be happy to see you awake and well. You've been asleep for quite awhile after all."

Looking to her hand, Minette slowly took it before walking out of the room and towards the exit. She stood close behind Nami's leg and continued to hold her comforting hand as they walked out of the room. Her heart, beating wildly already, had skipped a few beats upon seeing the four pairs of eyes suddenly land on her. She recognized Zoro but still had yet to meet the other three and she shook uncontrollably behind Nami.

Almost within the second of seeing her, the young male with curly hair and long nose ran up to greet her. "HI! I'm Ussop, the captain of The Going Merry- Ach!"

"No you're not, so stop saying that you are," the blond man argued, shoving Ussop out of the way and kneeling before Nami but looking at Minette. "I'm Sanji, the chef. I was the one to bring you food the first time we met. Do you remember that?" Being so close and unable to keep eye contact any longer, Minette looked away and hid even further behind Nami's leg.

"Yeah, you're also the one she pinned to a wall. How could she forget you?" Zoro chuckled making Nami and Ussop do the same as Sanji glared at the green haired man.

The last to come up to Minette and sit in front of her was the shortest boy of the group wearing the red shirt and straw hat that matched the flag. His smile was big and goofy looking and Minette couldn't help but want to be his friend. Before speaking he pointed his thumb at himself and laughed kindly, "And I'm Monkey D. Luffy, the actual captain of this ship and one day I'm going to be King of the pirates!" Luffy smiled wide then looked at Minette with a smaller smile on his face before continuing, "We're in need of a Lookout and I'm wondering if you would feel up to the job, seeing how you seem perfectly fine with heights and all."

Minette stared at Luffy, totally happy beyond comparison that no words could escape her lips or any emotion could show on her face. She was so happy, she was finally going to be free from this island, from awful memories and live a life that she deserved. She was going to live a life that Shi deserved.

She was brought out of her thoughts when a heavy hand landed on her head, making her look up to see Zoro smiling down at her. "You going to tell us your name, Shrimp? You are a new member of the crew after all."

Looking back to Luffy, who was still sitting in front of her and waiting patiently for her answer or some type or reply to his offer, the small girl smiled back. "M-My name is Minette."

"What?" Luffy gasped, startling her slightly. "You're name is Mouse?! That's so cool!"

"No Luffy," Nami sighed, "She said Minette."

"Mm… No. I like Mouse better. Mouse! The Lookout for the Straw Hat pirates! Has a nice ring to it, don't you think, Mouse?" Luffy looked down at Minette as he smile wide again.

Minette giggled, nodding her head and smiling. Sanji suddenly complimented her on her cuteness when he was shoved away and called a "pervert" by Zoro.

"Great!" Luffy laughed, "Now let's eat lunch! I'm starving!"


	11. Chapter:10

_To say yes, you have to sweat and roll up your sleeves and plunge both hands into life up to the elbows."_

 _~Jean Anouilh_

Sitting in between Nami and Zoro, everyone was laughing as they waited for their food. Not at what someone had said nor at a past memory, but at Minette. She was too small to see the table top. The side of the table meeting her eyes, though, when she was standing she could see over it just fine. It was the benches that did her no justice.

Instantly becoming cowardly by their laughter, Minette sunk further into her chair and almost disappeared from sight when Sanji came around the table - from standing over the burner - and picked her up before setting a small pot on the bench and sat her back down. Now, she was at the same height as Luffy.

"That should do it," Sanji chuckled before returning to the burner and stirring whatever was in the large pot in front of him.

"I guess 'Mouse' really is a good name for the kid, isn't it?" Zoro chuckled.

"Yeah!" Luffy laughed, "No wonder we couldn't find her anywhere on the island. She's so dang small!"

"I bet you were the best at Hide and Seek, huh?" Ussop laughed and Minette felt her eyebrows knit together.

"W-What is that?" Her voice light with confusion, Minette watched as the table grew quiet. She never heard of such a thing. Was it a game? Was it a title someone earns? Do you have to seek out something hard to find? Having just heard it for the first time, the words were foreign to her. She had no clue what this was.

"You've never played Hide and Seek?" Nami asked. Minette could feel the stunned stares of everyone around her as she stared at her fingers fidgeting with her sleeves.

She shook her head.

"How about Tag? You do know what Tag is, right?" Luffy asked, all seriousness in his tone. Sanji turned around now and stared at the girl with a tinge of pity. He suddenly realized just what type of childhood she had.

She shook her head. Minette had no idea what they were talking about. Should she know what these things are?

All was quiet when Minette looked up to Nami as she spoke, "How long have you been on this island all by yourself?"

Thinking about it, Minette remembered about what the pirate had said to her. They have been searching for her a little longer than a year, but that was just after learning about her existence. It was a long time until they had found Shi and an even longer time when they first arrived.

If Shi were here, she would know. She was always good with dates and stuff like that. She knew their birthday and when the oranges would be plentiful in harvest. The last day Shi ever told her the date was their tenth birthday but that was also the day when the pirates came.

Minette knew that she was at one point ten and assumes that she is now older than that, but how old was she know? When Shi was alive, she grew more and more confused as to what day it was and more concerned about being found in the beginning, when everything went straight to Hell.

Blinking out of her daze, Minette looked to Nami and shrugged. She really hadn't had a clue about anything.

"How about before they came? Do you remember what it was like then?" Nami asked, everyone else too speechless to think of questions.

Minette looked down to her sleeves again. Of course she remembers, how could she forget? The past is where Shi lives and will forever remain along with the other villagers.

She remembers getting isolated from the village because they were homeless.

She remembers being so scared the first night she spent in the forest, but Shi was even more so.

She remembers holding her twin when there were thunderstorms or lightning strikes.

She remembers the first time she ever tempted to build a fire and got burned.

She remembers reaching for Death's hand as hunger took a hold on her body before Shi was able to get help.

She remembers falling from the very first tree she's ever climbed.

She remembers almost being killed because Shi insisted on target practice.

She remembers catching her first fish or small animal.

She remembers when Shi was always by her side…

"Kid?" Zoro's deep voice brought her from her thoughts, but as she tried to look up at him she realized that a thick film of cracked glass was placed over her pale grey eyes. Everything was blurry before she blinked and suddenly felt something cool run down her cheek; but the cracked glass returned almost instantly and more water ran down her cheeks.

Realizing she was crying and knowing why had her reaching her fisted hands to her eyes and rubbing them. Trying to get herself to stop cry. She didn't want to be seen as weak in front of this group. She wanted to keep the reputation of the a 'strong little girl'; the lookout for the Straw Hat Pirates. But she couldn't stop. She couldn't hold back the sorrow she's been hiding since Shi's death. Never once has she cried over her twin's death aside from now. She had always thought that Shi being dead was much better than living except she couldn't help but miss her. If only she had stayed alive a little bit longer, then they would've found salvation together.

"It's alright, Mouse." The chair Luffy had been sitting in made a noise as he stood, making everyone look up. And even through glassy eyes, Minette could see the muscles in his arms tencing but the rim of his hat covered his eyes. His mouth was set in a frown as he continued, "I don't need to know anything about your past. But you are one of us now, and if someone messes with one of us, they are messing with all of us and I won't stand for that."

Luffy couldn't sit back and watch her cry. There was just something about Minette that made him want to protect her with his life. He considered her as his friend after all, and he'd do the same for everyone on aboard the ship, but Minette took a special place in his heart for some reason. As soon as he saw her lying unconscious on the infirmary bed, he couldn't wait to take her with him on his adventures. And just seeing her cry like that, without having to say anything and just remembering all the things she's been through by herself, he was inspired to kill whoever was making her shed such sad tears.

Eyes wide and still watery, Minette stared at Luffy, then glanced over to Sanji when he started walking towards the door leading to the deck. Entirely forgetting about the pot on the stove. "Men who make women cry aren't men at all. Let's go guys. We have some punks to kill."

Quickly running to the door, Minette held her arms out and blocked Sanji and Luffy from going through. "Y-You're going to get killed!" With more tears streaming down her face she said, "I can't watched anyone else get hurt. Please… don't go."

Feeling a heavy hand on her head, Minette looked up to see Zoro smiling down at her. "What did I tell ya, Shrimp? We aren't going to let you fight alone anymore. That's just the type of pirates we are."

Stepping around her, the boys - Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, and Ussop - walked out of the room and left Minette staring after them. She had never met a group so willing to die for someone they had just met. They were heroic. They were bold. They were fearless. They were… entirely stupid!

Quickly grabbing a knife off of the high counter, Minette started running after them with a surprised Nami running after her.

"Where are you going Minette? Get back here, it's not safe!"

She didn't bother with answering back. She couldn't let the boys face the fierce creature that roams this island and its many cannibal minions. She has only seen the captain once but it was enough to make her heart race and her knees tremble in fear; because of that, they are going to need all the help they can get.


	12. Chapter: 11

_The bravest thing you can do when you are not brave is to profess courage and act accordingly._

 _~Corra May Harris_

" _If I showed you my tears would you collect them like rain, store them in jars that are labelled with "Pain"? Would you follow their tracks from my eyes down my cheeks as they write all the stories I'm too scared to speak? Would you stop them with kisses, bring their flow to a halt as you teach me that pain isn't always my fault? Would you hold my face gently and whisper the words: "You're too precious to cry."? If I showed you my tears, Minette, would you finally show me your own and learn: though we're lonely, we're never alone?"_

It was time to fight back.

She was done collecting her dead sister's tears.

She was done with worry.

She was done with sadness.

She was done with sleepless nights, starless skies, restless hunters.

She was done with the memories.

She was done with the nightmares, and the struggle to find the will to continue surviving.

She was done with the endless game of The Hunter and The Hunted.

It was finally time to fight back; and if she must die, let it not be like a hog. Caught and pinned in an inglorious spot. If she were to die, she only hoped it would be somewhere memorable. Someplace close to the sky, someplace close to the stars in order to find her way safely home.

If fighting back meant dying, then so be it!

It was time to show them just how much pain they caused her.

It was time to fight back.

A loud booming cut through the once silent forest like an explosion, ultimately stopping every train of thought she had until another loud noise just like the one previously made itself known. Blinking out of her daze, Minette climbed the nearest tree and kept climbing until she had a full view of the ruined village around her. The thick wall the pirates had build around the area when they first came had a large hole broken through it with Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji standing in the middle of it. Minette could only assume that Ussop was somewhere in the trees, keeping an eye on their backs while they had knocked down the wall somehow, but how? They held no explosives, and no weapon was strong enough to ever create a dent in the wall before. How had it crumbled now?

Minette watched the scene unfold as the once shell shocked cannibals took a fighting stance, and though he could not be seen, she knew that the captain was somewhere hiding, waiting to strike and eat the three members of the Straw Hat crew.

"Are you the pirates," Luffy yelled out, anger evident in his tone, "Who took over this island?"

"What's it to you, Boy? The only thing you should be worried about is how you and your friends are going to be cooked!" Someone from the crowd cackled, which started a rawr of laughter though the whole crew.

Sanji sighed out a puff of smoke, "So you are the ones we're looking for." He wasn't going to argue with Luffy about how they were the only other pirate crew on the island, he just wanted Luffy to have a clear understanding that yes, they were the ones they were supposed to fight. He was kind of slow with these sort of things after all.

Luffy growl at Sanji's comment and grew angrier by the second. "You made her cry." He was so furious now, he was shaking.

"Luffy," Zoro looked to him, his words muffled as a sword was put to his mouth, "Leave some for us."

"Yeah right!" Luffy yelled, bending his knees and holding his right bicep with his other hand, "They made her cry!" In a flash, his entire right arm launched forward, extending from his body twenty, thirty feet - hitting people as it swept the crowd of enemies off their feet and over the far end of the barricade - before retreating back to his body in normal length.

Minette couldn't do anything but stare and question if what she saw was reality as Zoro and Sanji started to fight alongside Luffy. She had never seen anything like it. Luffy was obviously anything less than a normal human being and clearly very strong, Minette was sure of it. No one was able to stretch that far, no one was able to take out fifty people with one attack. No one should be able to stretch like rubber!

"Zoro! Look out!"

Hearing Ussop hiding in the distance, Minette instantly searched for the green haired man and tensed upon seeing him surrounded, but before she could do anything something small was shot through the air and hit one of the guys in the back of the head when they were about to strike Zoro.

Fending off the other attackers rather quickly, Zoro turned in Ussop's initial direction, "Don't you want to fight the front line to exaggerate your heroic story to Minette when we get back?" Zoro chuckle was muffled from the sword in his mouth but it was audible enough to understand clearly.

"No, I think I'm fine over here!"

Zoro couldn't answer back when more pirates came to surround him only to be chopped down, but they kept coming without hesitation.

"There's so many of them!" Sanji yelled.

"Yeah," Luffy said calmly, as if he wasn't fighting at all, "just like the Marines."

Hearing a snap, Minette glanced over to see someone sneaking up to Ussop. Just a yard behind the curly haired sharp shooter. Ussop was ready to launch another ball of some kind at an enemy and was completely oblivious to the fact that someone with murder in their eyes was behind him.

Quickly running to the end of the thick branch and jumping off, Minette landed on the cannibal with a loud thud, scaring Ussop and causing him to scream and miss-shoot his ball into the ground. Cradling the man below her, Minette threw punch after punch at the man's face and only stopped when he was deemed unconscious.

She may not know what Hide and Seak is, but she knows how to fight.

"Mi-Mi-MINETTE!" Ussop suddenly wrapped the girl into a tight hug as his entire being shook and tears leaked from his eyes. "You saved me! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I'm too young to die!"

"I-It's alright, Ussop," Minette's naturally light voice was strained from the sudden physical contact and she didn't know what to do next.

"WHAT? MOUSE IS HERE?!" Luffy yelled, getting distracted for a second, but it was enough for the attackers to land a solid punch in the stomach and sent him flying into the wall making it come crashing down onto his legs.

Distracted by seeing the situation their captain was suddenly in, Zoro and Sanji were also caught by surprise. Zoro was cut just below the kneecap, making him fall to his knees before he was kicked to the ground and confiscated of his swords. Sanji was punched in the face hard enough to put him on his back then held at sword point. Then, the rest of the pirates who were still conscious and weren't guarding defenceless men, all looked towards Ussop and Minette, instantly finding them behind a bush.

Ussop and Minette stared wide eyed as they started advancing towards them, but she was not shaking like the being beside her. She stood in front of Ussop, taking the knife from her pocket and prepared for the fight of her life.

"Minette…" Ussop gasped.

"What are you doing, Kid!?" Zoro yelled.

"Run!" Sanji demanded. "Fighting them with a meer knife is suicide!"

"NO!" Minette yelled back. "I'm not going to run away anymore! It's time to fight back!"

"Huh," one of the advancing men chuckled, "You sound just like a little girl I slaughtered a few years ago. Kinda look like her too."

Minette froze, suddenly coming to the awful realization that Shi was killed by this man in particular. A fat, squinty looking man. Rage built in her chest again, starting in her heart and shooting through her entire body as her hands shook. How dare he talk about her. How dare he even think about her.

"You know," another man chuckled, "I heard there was actually twins on this island at one point. I wonder what happened to them."

"Sh-Shut up," Minette stuttered but not in fear, in boiling fury. She was going to explode into a murderous rampage, kill everything in sight if she's not careful, and she knew that this was their plan. They wanted her to lose herself in her own madness, to make sure she suffered to the fullest before they ate her.

"I bet you a hundred berries one of them is standing in front of us know… and the other was eaten alive-"

"I SAID SHUT UP!" And she snapped. No hesitation. Nothing holding her back. She had fallen for their deadly trap but she will not be stuck forever, she was sure of it.

Jumping onto the closest man, the inertia knocked him backwards and cracked his skull onto a rock below. She didn't even have to punch him or check if he was unconscious before she pounced on another person. She heard it crack.

She moved like lightning. Dodging swords, punches, kicks, catching knives that were thrown at her before throwing them back. She landed all if not most of her swift punches to the stomach and groin area since it was all she could reach. She even blocked gabbs from swords with her little knife, and got to cut a good amount of attacker's shins and thighs before moving on. She remained untouched until someone kicked the wrapped bullet wound in her shin and lifted her from the ground by her ankle.

"So you're the one who's been causing me so much trouble, huh?" This new voice was deep and calm as it dangled Minette a foot off of the ground. He almost sounded board, but Minette wasn't fooled by the friendly sounding voice. She's seen what this person was like behind the scenes. He was a true monster. "I must admit," he chuckled, "I was expecting someone entirely different. Not a little girl, but seeing you fight my men just know, I understand why they had so much trouble finding you after all these years."

"You better let her go right now," Luffy yelled, struggling to get out from beneath the debris of crumbling wall. "Or else I'll-"

"You'll what?" the man taunted. "Stretch and punch me in the face like what you did to my men?"

Luffy grounded his teeth at that and stayed quiet. There was nothing he could do at the moment, but as the man turned away, Luffy through the punch the man predicted.

"DON'T!" Minette yelled and quickly curled herself up and reach her arm out to stop Luffy from making contact before the man could bite off his entire hand. But saving Luffy's hand came with the price of loosing something in return. Instead of biting Luffy, the man bit into Minette's forearm with so much power it pierced skin and made her scream. His teeth were not sharp in the slightest, so getting bit by this man was like a bunch of tiny dull blades stabbing into exposed flesh.

"LET GO OF HER, YOU BASTARD!" Luffy yelled, unable to take her screams any longer. It pained him worse to hear her scream than to see her cry. If he wasn't stuck, the man would've been dead.

Once the man seemed to realize it wasn't Straw Hat he had bitten, he unlocked his jaw around Minette's arm and let her hang below him again. Blood dripping from her arm as she cradled it to her chest and tried to hold in the tears it caused her.

I'm stronger than this, she thought. I've experienced real pain before, this is nothing. Losing my parents was painful. Loosing everything I held dear to me was painful. Losing Shi was painful. This is nothing.

Kicking her in the stomach, the man broke Minette from her thoughts and made her look up at him with a grown. For a moment, the sun casted a shadow on his face and she could only see his golden snake like eyes before her eyes came to focus on his seemingly young features. His nose sharp and jaw defined, but no older than Nami. His skin was abnormally pale but on some parts of his face was patches of green with scales that shimmered in the sunlight and blinded her eyes for a moment.

Right now, Minette was a small mouse stuck in a snake's trap.

"You're lack of tears amuses me. It makes me wonder how much pain your body can actually endure. Shall we test it?"

"Don't you dare touch her," Zoro growled as he went to attack his guards but his cut knee was kicked out from under him almost instantly. He was back on the ground within seconds.

"A warning, Green Hair. You'll get attention of your own next if you don't keep it down." Then he kicked her again, trying to see if she would let any tears slip, but none did.

"HEY!" Sanji yelled.

"Same applies to you, Blondie!"

"Why," Minette crooked, choking down the huge lump in her throat as she tried to speak, "Why are you doing this?"

"We're cannibals and pirates, Little Girl. We need human meat to survive and the open sea to never get caught. It's only natural we stop to kill off a few villages every once in awhile. And besides, once we learned what this island had for the taking, we couldn't resist. Us coming here was inevitable."

"But nothing was on this island but people and crops-"

"That's where you're wrong Little Mouse. This island was home to a Devil Fruit called Healo Healo. It can stop a person from aging, can heal wounds three times faster than what it would take with actual medication, and heighten a person's senses - see in the dark, catch things in mid air, hear a mile away. The only catch is you can still die from viruses or natural accidents like drowning. I have to admit, if your people would've just given us the fruit, we would've spared them, but they had made it into a serum to inject into their people so everyone was equal. That's also why we couldn't leave the island without you, my dear. You also have the devil fruit properties in your DNA and I want all of that fruit's power."

Minette stared wide eyed, but she couldn't see. Everything was black and she was suddenly numb with the realization that Shi and the entire village were cursed to die from the very moment that fruit was found before she was born. Blinking out of her daze, Minette looked to her arm and saw it no longer bleeding and light pink scars replaced the puncture wounds. Then she thought of how she was able to survive without food or water for weeks on end. It wasn't her will to survive that kept her going. It was the fruit. This only justified that the man was telling the truth.

Minette will never die of old age.

She will forever be stuck in this little body.

She will never be able to meet her little sister in heaven.


	13. Chapter: 12

_You may not be responsible for getting knocked down but you're certainly responsible for getting back up._

 _~Wally Amos_

Minette will never die of old age.

She will forever be stuck in this little body.

She will never be able to meet her little sister in heaven.

" _Hey, Minette?"_

" _Yes, Shi?"_

" _What do you think it's like to die?"_

" _It's probably peaceful, and quiet, and maybe a little dark."_

" _Then… are we dead now?"_

" _No. It's just night time."_

" _Oh. I like this, Minette. Will death be like this? Sleepy, comfortable, and submissive?"_

" _No, Shi."_

" _Why not?"_

" _Because I won't let you die."_

Minette hung in the man's grip, silent as he and everyone else stared. Trying to see how she would react to the news. But she couldn't think beyond a single question that randomly popped into her mind. How long has she really been on this island all alone? Were weeks mistaken for months? Were hours mistaken for days? She couldn't tell, she was still stuck in the same body now as compared to when the pirates came. But then reality shocked her awake with the startling realization that Shi would've never been able to die if these stupid pirates never found them. Shi would've still been here, they would've escaped this island together with the Straw Hats. How dare they snuff out her eternal light.

"I won't die here," Minette vowed. She wasn't going to die at the mercy of this man. She was going to die on her own terms, but first live a life worth living for both her and Shi. Even if that meant never being able to see Shi again.

"Huh? What was that?" The man lifted Minette further off the ground, lifted her ankle well over his head so that they could be face to face.

Glaring at the man, Minette growled as best she could. "You're going to pay for the pain you've cost me."

The man looked at her. Not glaring back but squinting, trying to find something in her light grey eyes to explain her sudden threat. He was curious as to why she wasn't questioning about her inability to die of old age. Surely that was more startling than anything else. His eyebrows knitted together, "Why do you keep fighting? I've captured you and rendered you weaponless. Your new friends aren't going to live to see sunset, so why do you insist to make things harder on yourself? Just give up, Squirt."

"I can't because I was the type of person that held onto things too tight. I was unable to release my grip even when it no longer felt like the correct thing to do. And although it gave me blisters, and my fingers would all ache, I always thought that holding on was worth the pain it took to keep what I had. When I used to think of losing things, I'd lose a part of me too in the realization that I'd slowly become someone my heart no longer knew. Then one day something happened. I dropped what I had once held dear but my soul become lighter because of it and didn't fill with anxiety. It had taught my heart that somethings aren't meant to last forever, they arrive to teach you lessons and then continue on.

You don't have to cling to people who no longer make you smile, or do something you would've come to hate. Sometimes the thing you're fighting for isn't worth the cost and not everything you ever lose is bound to be a loss. But you were the one who made me drop it in the first place. If you had never come then perhaps I could've held on to my little sister a little while longer."

Lunging at the man's face, Minette grabbed at his head and bit the side of his neck, making him fall back and into the dirt as he yelled out in surprise. His men were distracted enough for Sanji and Zoro to make their escape and start fighting back while Nami - having been there the entire time without catching anyone's attention - was finally able to get the boulder off of Luffy.

Ussop watched as Luffy, Sanji, and Zoro all fought the crewmen in the way of their youngest ship member. All desperate to be the one who protected her from any form of harm, it was sort of like a race on who could kill how many enemies and get to be the little girl's heroin. But then he looked to Minette as she attacked the man with her small fists. Trying hard to punch, scratch, mark his face in any way without getting bit again but without enough body weight to keep his hands in place, her attempts to fight were ultimately futile. But despite that, she continued to fight and Ussop couldn't help but think of the girl as nothing less than brave. She was small and weak compared to him, but she did not try to run away. She seemed to hold no fear at this moment, only fury. Right now, all he could see in the little girl he once saw as small and timid was an even greater worrier than he was.

That was until the man caught her wrists and flipped their position. She was now being sat on by the man, her wrists being held in one hand as the other grabbed at her bandaged throat. With the bruise still not fully healed, the slightest pressure had her gasping for air. He didn't have to squeeze hard to see her wince in pain, but still no tears fell.

"Seems like someone found you before I did," he chuckled.

Minette smirked, "I-It was one of your men." She spat blood at him from getting kicked in the face before.

"They should've killed you when they had the chance," he growled, slowly tightening his grip even more.

"B-But…" Minette gasped out, a smile on her face as tears raced down her cheeks from the immense amount of pressure in her head. "I-I k-k-kill him f-first."

"You little piece of shit!" Tightening his grip, the smile never left Minette's face as the satisfaction of watching her enemy so frustrated amused her. She was sure someone was going to save her since they all rushed to fight a battle that wasn't even theirs to begin with. She could hold her breath long enough to wait for that moment.

Unable to stand and watch any further, Ussop charged from the tree line, no one guarding him anymore as they all went to restrain Nami and Luffy, and tackled the man off of Minette. He had his frying pan in hand and starting pounding on his head the second the man was caught off guard. Then, defeating all of the enemies, Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, and Nami rushed forward. Nami immediately went to the coughing girl on the ground while the others went to help Ussop bash the man's face in. Zoro beat the man's legs with one of his sword's sheaths, Sanji rubbed his face into the ground with the bottom of his shoe as if he was putting out a cigarette, and Luffy used his multiple punching attack to cave in his rib cage.

Seeing that everything was being taken care of by the thrio, Ussop rushed to Nami's side where she held Minette in her arms. "Is she alright, Nami?" Ussop asked, concern for the girl laced in his voice.

"She's fine. Just a little shook up," Nami replied. As Ussop could see, shook up was the correct word. Minette was shaking, clutching fistfulls of Nami's shirt in her small hands as the actual amount of fear she felt towards the whole situation finally broke through the damn, though, she let no tears spill. She just shook in Nami's arms, not saying a word as she tried to catch her breath.

Minette was savoring Nami's motherly warmth. She had forgotten what it had felt like, it had been so long. To feel as precious as these people made her feel. They had fed her. They had taken her under their wing. They had fought her battle without her asking. They had already considered her apart of the crew, their very own Lookout. She was more than grateful that they had found her in her time of dire need but she didn't feel in debt to them. She felt more free and alive than any other time in her life.

Gasping, Minette was suddenly lifted from Nami's arms and held tightly against another body as they nuzzled their face against hers. "Don't you ever scare me like that again, got it Mouse?! From now on you're staying right here by my side where Big Brother Luffy can protect you!" Luffy said, still nuzzling his face against her own in a tight embrace.

Minette blinked at his words: Big Brother. She couldn't help but wonder how these people saw her. Did they think of her as strong, fearless even, after fighting and doing her best? Did they think of her as a little sister? She could understand the desperate need to protect a younger sibling as Luffy just demonstrated with his worry for her but they had only met just hours ago. She really only knew Zoro and even then her knowledge of who he really was was limited.

"I think that's enough cautling for one day, Luffy," Nami said with a smile, "We should be heading back to the ship. We really only came here for food supplies but it seems like nothing is here. We need to get to the nearest island to stock up."

Luffy put Minette down now and started walking towards the ship ahead of everyone else. Just remembering how hungry he was and how the food was still waiting on the table for their return from battle. Everyone else started walking as well, but Minette as she stared after Luffy. Should Minette let them in? It would save her a lifetime of heartbreak if one of them ends up dying. It would be much easier to join their crew and try not to be too attached than to join and act like a big happy family all the time.

A heavy hand falling on her head broke her train of thought and she looked up to see Zoro smirking down at her. "Great job today, kid. You fought hard," he tousled her messy hair, messing it up even more, "We're all proud of you."

Minette couldn't contain the immense amount of joy she suddenly felt. It made her smile and hug his waist, "Thank you, Zoro. For everything," her voice was small and horse from being strangled again but it wasn't much different from how she normally talked.

"Are you coming, Minette?"

Looking up, Minette saw Nami holding out her hand for the girl and without hesitation, Minette took it and started walking with Nami and Zoro by her side.

Once aboard the ship Nami took Minette to the top deck as the boys started raising the anchor, lowering the sails and steering the ship away from the shore. She couldn't help but smile at the scene, how funny it was to see the boys scramble around on the lower deck and how she was finally leaving the island. It was all just a new, refreshing start for a different and better life.

"Hey, Mouse!" Luffy called and Minette looked over to see him sitting on the head of the ram, facing backwards to talk to her.

"Y-Yes?"

"Want to see where you will be most important on this ship?" Without being able to reply, Luffy stretched his arms towards the girl and before she could run away she was lifted into the air and placed on the lookout post right above the main sail.

Instantly, Minette giggled with glee. She could see everything from up here, she could move around without worrying if she would fall, she was higher up than any tree she could climb.

This is it, she thought, this is the place I'm supposed to be. This is who I was always meant to be. I'm finally free!

"Th-This is amazing!" And she yelled out to the sky, to the heavens, to her little sister, Shi.


	14. Chapter:13

_I avoid looking forwards or backwards, and try to keep looking upward._

 _~Charlotte Bronte_

Sitting in the lookout, Minette couldn't stop smiling. It was so peaceful up here, so tranquil with the white puffy clouds in the orange sky, so gleeful with the sound of the boy's laughter on the deck below, and so calming staring out to the horizon all day long without having to worry about when her next meal will be or if she was even going to survive that long. She didn't have to worry about getting off the island anymore, she didn't have to worry about the cannibals pirates anymore, she didn't have to worry about being alone anymore. Now she had people she can rely on, people she can come to trust even more than what she does now. She was apart of something, something big, and she was so happy to tag along. So happy to finally have something to look forward to.

Luffy had explained to her what the One Piece was, but she only understood bits and pieces of his explanation. She knew that a death of a famous pirate many years ago was the start of it all and that there was a rumor that he had hide all of his treasure somewhere, calling it the "One Piece". Luffy said that it was hidden somewhere dangerous that Minette already forgot the name of, but the reason why he was going on this journey was to accomplish his goal of being King of the Pirates. She wasn't quite sure what that meant but she remembered him announcing himself as a future King of the pirates when they first meant. Then, along the way, Luffy recruited everyone aboard the ship so far who all had their own reasons for going with Luffy. Whether it was to become stronger, to chart the entire ocean, to become the greatest warrior, or to find the myths of the sea, they were in it together and very supportive of one another… Well, kind of.

"Tag!" Luffy's voice on the deck below caught Minette's attention. Carefully rising herself onto her tippy toes, Minette peared over the railing to find Luffy poking Zoro on the shoulder as the green haired swordsman just sat there. But he also seemed to be severely annoyed.

"I told you, I'm not playing."

"Ussop! Zoro's it!"

"I'm not playing, you numb skull!"

"Awe," Luffy whined, "But we need at least three to play. Come on, Zoro. Please? Just this once?"

"We just recruited a ten year old girl, Luffy. I'm sure she would be more than happy to play with you, so stop bugging me will ya?!"

"Oh yeah!" Luffy jumped up and looked towards the sky to find Minette still spying on them. Her head just barely poking over the railing. "Hey Mouse!" Luffy called up.

"Yes?"she replied.

"Do you want to play Tag with Ussop and I? It's really fun!"

"Um, o-okay. I'll be right down." Carefully climbing down the latter, Minette came to stand in front of Luffy and Ussop.

"Okay, so here's how Tag works, Minette," Ussop said, "It's like a game of Chase and Run. The Chaser has to touch one of the Runners to not be a Chaser anymore, then the Runner turns into the Chaser and the Chaser previous to that becomes the Runner. There really isn't any win or lose in this game but it's just a fun excuse to run around the ship without getting into too much trouble. Do you understand?"

Minette stared at them for a moment before nodding.

"Okay!" Luffy laughed, "I nominate Mouse to be the Chaser! So that makes Ussop and I Runners. Got it, Mouse? You have to chase us now, alright."

"Okay… But what's Zoro?" Minette asked, pointing to the man.

"Not playing," he replied but they ignored him.

"He's a… Sitter!" Ussop said, "Sitters just sit there."

"He's a part of the game?" Minette questioned, she wasn't fully grasping the concept that Zoro wasn't playing at all and it was just her, Luffy and Ussop playing.

"Yup!" Luffy laughed, "Now let's play!"

Instantly the two boys ran away from Minette as she stood there, trying to remember what she was supposed to do at this point. Then she remembered. Turning around, Minette faced Zoro and walked up to his side. She watched as his eyes slowly opened to gaze back at her clueless expression, and before he could ask what she could possibly want she poked his shoulder very lightly.

"T-Tag."

They stared at each other for a moment before Zoro sighed, "You have no idea how to play do you?"

She shook her head.

"You just know to poke someone then say Tag, yeah?"

She nodded and he sighed again as he stood.

"Then I'll help out. Together, we can tag everyone on the ship, alright?"

Minette smiled, "Okay."

They made their way towards the kitchen, where Nami was charting and Sanji was cooking dinner. Just sitting in silence when Minette and Zoro entered, earning their attention.

"Oh, hello Minette," Nami smiled.

"Dinner isn't done just yet, my dear. Go on and continue playing outside," Sanji smiled.

Minette looked up to Zoro, watched as he nodded, before walking further into the kitchen, her bare feet never once making a nose as they patted the wood floor.

"Is there something you two need?" Nami asked.

Standing before Nami, with all eyes on her, Minette poked her arm, "Tag." Nami froze as Minette made her way towards Sanji then poked his leg, "Tag."

Sanji stared down at the girl for a moment as she waited for his response. She forgot what she was supposed to do now that she has tagged a few people. But before she could remember, Sanji scooped the small girl in his arms and hugged her close to his chest.

"Awe, that was simply too cute, my dear! Simply too cute!"

"We have to go tag Luffy and Ussop now, Sanji. They are the Runners, I am the Chaser and Zoro is the Sitter… who is now the Chaser as well, I guess." Minette smiled up at the blond man as he smiled happily back. He could only be thankful to the Gods that he was able to save such a young, happy, and clueless life on the barren island. He was so happy he will be there to see her learn about new things, go to new places, and meet new people along their journey together.

He couldn't help but chuckle as he watched Minette and Zoro exit the kitchen to go find Ussop and Luffy as they hid somewhere on the ship. "You know," he said, "she's going to be learning a lot of things in a very short amount of time. I wonder if she can handle it."

"I'm sure she'll be fine," Nami smiled. "Yes, this is the first time in who knows how many years she's come off that island, but something is telling me that her little knowledge of the outside world isn't going to stop her."

"You're right as always Nami," Sanji sighed, turning back to cooking, "but knowing that she's eaten that Healo Healo fruit, I wonder if her mindset will stay the same as well."

"It's hard to say, really. No one knows just how long she was on that island. She could be older than us."

"Now that's a scary thought."

As Sanji continued cooking and Nami finished the chart of Minette's home island, said girl was on the back deck chasing Ussop and Luffy while Zoro sat and watched. The sky was darkening but that didn't spoil their fun. If anything, it made it even more so since Minette could see in the night time just as well as the day. For her it was like hunting for food on her island all over again.

She cornered Ussop first, his back to the outside wall of the kitchen and Zoro standing before him. Keeping him in place so Minette could have an easy tag. Getting Luffy wasn't as easy.

He was such an energetic man he was running around and bouncing all over the place, making Minette out of breath trying to catch him. But she finally had him with no escape on the front deck. He was on the ram's head looking around to try and find a way out but there was none. Minette was advancing on him fast. A little too fast.

Her foot slipped under her small frame and she fell over the side of the edge. Luffy tried grabbing her when he suddenly lost his footing as well and started a fall on his own. Quickly, the Straw Hat was able to grab Minette, pull her to him then wrap both his arms and legs around the head of the ram. Minette's eyes were clenched shut as she held onto Luffy's red shirt by the fist full. Even without the Devil Fruit in her, Minette never learned how to swim and she wasn't itching to find out what it was like to drown any time soon.

"Minette! Luffy!" Zoro yelled, thinking the worst as he peered over the rams head. But much to his relief, they were both hanging there and safe.

Reaching down, Zoro grabbed the back of Minette's sweat shirt and lifted her up and back aboard. Not minding Luffy as he kneeled in front of the girl. "Jezz, you scared me. You need to be more careful, okay?"

Minette nodded as Sanji and Nami rushed out of the kitchen door and Ussop around the corner. "Is someone hurt?" Nami asked.

"No, fortunately," Zoro sighed and gently pushed Minette in front of him, towards Nami. "Is dinner done yet?"

"Yeah. Was just about to come out here to call you guys. Why did you yell?"

"No reason. Luffy just almost killed Minette. It's probably not going to be the last time that happens."

"What?!" Luffy yelled, sitting back on the rams head, "She slipped all on her own!"

"Whatever," Nami sighed, "It's time to eat so just come inside. I'm sure you're all hungry after such a long day."

"You got that right!" Luffy laughed and ran towards the kitchen.

As they sat around the table, Minette watched as Luffy scarfed down the food and even stole some from Ussop's plate when he was finished. She still had to sit on that cooking pot while they try to find or make something else for her to sit on but she didn't mind it. As long as she had food of her own to eat. Taking her first bite of her food, Minette moaned in bliss, she didn't know what it was but it was delicious and left a savory taste in her mouth. Which, caught the attention of everyone else and made them smile.

"Minette," Ussop said, "what did you normally eat on your island?"

"The apples that Zoro brought me in the mornings."

"No, before that."

"Well, I used to steal from the cannibals until they found out then I didn't really eat anything."

"NOTHING AT ALL?!" Luffy spat out his food on Ussop's face.

She shook her head. "There was nothing left on the island to eat."

It was silent until Luffy looked up from his seconds, "Who's your twin?"

Minette froze.

"Luffy!" Nami yelled as Sanji hit him over the head, "You can't ask someone that!"

"Why not?"

"It's rude for one thing."

"I asked politely."

"No you didn't!"

Standing abruptly, Minette's chair made a noise as it scraped across the floor. Making the room go silent. "I'm… Gonna go to the post," she said. "Thank you for the food Sanji. It was really tasty." Then she walked out and climbed back up the post. Sitting there with her knees pulled into her chest, Minette rested her head on her knees.

Could she really come to trust these guys enough to tell them about Shi?

"I'm sorry."

Minette jumped at the sudden voice. She didn't hear anyone climb the ladder after her, or maybe she was too lost in thought to hear it. But, upon looking up, she saw Luffy sitting on the railing to the lookout post. Legs crossed with his arms folded over his chest, his bottom lip puckered out as he avoided eye contact by looking to the stars. It was obvious Nami or someone made him come up here to apologize.

Relaxing her tense muscles, Minette laid her head back down on her knees. "I-It's alright," she said, "I'm sorry for creating a scene. It's just, I know that she was the same age as me but she was still my little sister. I'd do anything to protect her… I did everything I could…" Shoving her face further into her knees, Minette was done crying over her sister's death. She didn't know how long she had been grieving but she was done with the tears and it was time to accept the facts. "She died because I couldn't protect her."

"I don't believe that for a second, Mouse." Luffy said, no usual joking or childish antics in his tone, and Minette looked up at him again. "Seeing you fight today," he continued, "with a fire so passionate under you, I can't possibly believe that you were the cause of your sister's death. It was the pirates who did the deed, not you. I won't let you take the blame for something you didn't do. So no more of this back and forth stuff, alright? Yes, she is gone and it's never a good idea to try and forget a loved one, but you need to loosen the reins a little bit because as you said: all it's doing is giving you more blisters."

She stared up at him, unknowing her carefree captain could be so empathetic, then she smiled. "Thank you, Luffy."

Sighing, Luffy sat next to Minette. "You know, I have an older brother so I can kind of understand where you're coming from."

"You do?"

"Yup. He always bailed me out of trouble and always made me laugh." Reaching into his pants pocket, Luffy retrieved a folded piece of tanned paper. Unfolding it, he handed it to Minette before continuing. "His name is Ace."

Looking at the tanned paper in her hands, Minette saw the photo of Ace in the center with writing above and below it. Looking back to Luffy, Minette pointed to the writing, "What does it say?"

Without questioning the fact that she couldn't read, Luffy pointed to the numbers on the paper, "This means that whoever capture's Ace, dead or alive, gets a reward of five hundred and fifty million barries."

"Woah," Minette breathed as she looked at the photo. She couldn't find any similar facial characteristics between the picture and Luffy but she didn't question it as another popped into her mind. "Dead or alive? If that's the case then how do you know he's still out there somewhere?"

"I just do."

"Minette, Luffy," Nami's voice suddenly rang through the air as she called up to them, "it's time to call it a night. We're going to be docking at an island tomorrow for supplies so it'd be best if we get some sleep now."

Jumping up, Luffy laughed as he peered over the railing, "We're coming!" He turned back to Minette, "Grab on."

"W-What?"

"Come on, it'll be fun," he laughed and wrapped his arm around Minette's small form before jumping over the edge of the lookout. Unable to hold it in, Minette screamed from the feeling of being completely helpless as they free falled, her stomach flipping multiple times before they finally landed.

"Are you trying to get her killed?!" Zoro yelled as Minette ran to Nami's open arms. It was such a sudden shock, she was shaking again as she gripped the front of Nami's shirt.

"No. I just thought it would be a bit of fun," Luffy grumbled under his breath.

Nami sighed as she picked up the small girl. "You have to at least try to understand that she's not used to everything yet," Nami said, "She hasn't had human contact in a few years, so try to keep things calm for a little while, okay Luffy?"

"So I can't play Tag anymore?" Minnette questioned and Nami's heart melted as she started walking in the direction of her room.

"Of course you can still play Tag. Just be careful, and if you see something new that might be a bit scarey at first just come to anyone on the ship. Alright?"

Minette smiled, "Okay."


	15. Chapter:14

_At night, when the world is still and quiet, my thoughts are loud._

 _~Unknown_

" _Are you alright, Shi?"_

" _Yes. It's only an eye."_

" _But you tumbled down the hill. There's a stick pointing out of it."_

" _As I said, I'm alright."_

" _You don't look like it."_

" _Then stop looking."_

" _... Should I go get something to eat then? So you can rebuild your strength?"_

" _I'm not dying, Minette. It's just an eye."_

" _A useless eye."_

" _Yes… useless…"_

" _... I'll go get food. Don't try to pull it out."_

" _Alright."_

 _*walking*_

 _*hears a scream*_

" _Shi?"_

" _..."_

" _SHI?!"_

Her eyes snapped open, the memory of her sister's scream echoing in her mind as she stared up at the ceiling, gasping for air.

Sleep never came easy for Minette. There were never dreams of rainbows and pots of gold, of orange sunsets and flowers, of laughter and happiness. Only memories of despair and ever lasting depression. She was foolish in thinking Nami's motherly warmth would shoo away any nightmare that may come her way and protect her from the voices of the night that whisper threats in her sleep. She was foolish in thinking so much would change just because she was no longer alone. In a second, she could be alone once again, after all, anything could happen.

Not wanting to tempt another nightmare, Minette shifted off of the bed, glad that Nami had changed position so drastically that she was no longer in her arms, and walked towards the ajar door across the room. Minette had asked for Nami to leave it open, the thought of being trapped in an enclosed room scared her immensely since she spend most of her life outside and in the open air. Slipping through the small crack, scared to touch the door incase it'll creek and wake Nami, Minette walked the hall as silent as a mouse. She could hear the boys snoring in their sleeping quarters, even hear Luffy mumbling and Zoro's subconscious reply as she passed. She was amazed that even in their sleep do they find something to fight about.

Stepping through the door and onto the open deck, Minette breathed in the smell of sea salt. It was something she still had yet to get used to but just the fact that she was away from the stale scent of death was refreshing. She walked towards the main sail's post and readied herself to climb until she heard someone walking down the steps leading to the top deck and kitchen. Looking over her shoulder, Minette saw Sanji lighting a cigarette as his eyes locked on hers.

"Can't sleep?" he asked as he leaned into the railing on steps.

Turning around fully, Minette nodded. "I-I had a bad dream."

"A bad dream, huh?" Sanji sighed, stepping off the last step and walked towards her, shrugging off his coat as he did so. Wrapping the coat around her shoulders before picking her up, Sanji said, "Well, it's much too cold out here for you to be wandering around. How about I make you something to help you fall back asleep?"

He held her close to his chest, trying to conserve what little warmth she had left from being exposed to the frigid air of the night longer than he liked, and climbed the step towards his kitchen.

"B-But," she stammered, a gentle but chilling breeze running chills down her spine, "If I go back to sleep, I'll have another nightmare."

"Don't worry, my dear," Sanji smiled as he entered the kitchen, "The stuff I'm making is special. It'll help you sleep without any sort of nightmare or bad memory." Seating her at the table, Sanji turned to the fridge.

Laying her head on the table, Minette couldn't help but think that there was nothing in the world that could do such a thing that Sanji had promised. Her nightmares were memories. There was no amount of brain tissue someone could remove to stop her from remembering the horrors that plagued her mind. She just has to deal with the fact that they will always be there to haunt her in the darkest corners of her mind in the middle of the night.

"So," Sanji said, his back to Minette as he stirred something over the stove, "Do you want to tell me what it was about?"

Minette looked up at him, at the back of his head and questioned if she should. He had saved her from starvation after all, had been generous enough to fight for her freedom as well, and she had already confided in Luffy just hours ago. It would only be fair if she told the man who brought her aboard first.

Looking back to the wall in front of her, Minette sighed, "It was more of a memory, really. A really really bad one."

"When they came?"

"No," Minette wanted to stop talking but she couldn't for some reason. She wanted to tell someone about her pain just to get it off of her chest in hopes someone will hear and understand what type of terror she had been through. "It was about her."

Sanji looked over his shoulder and down at her, still stirring the product in the pot. "Your twin?"

She nodded.

It was quiet as they both thought. She was wondering how to continue while he wondered if he should push her for another answer to a new question.

Then, he spoke up, "If you don't mind me asking, and you don't have to reply if you don't want to, but… how did she die exactly?"

She was silent after a moment, then spoke, "Luffy told me it wasn't my fault," she looked at her hands, seeing them covered in blood before they went to their natural pale tone as memories of that night start flooding back. "And I promised him, that I wouldn't dwell on the past any more…" She paused as Sanji set a glass of what looked like warm milk on the table before taking a seat across from her. He said nothing, urging her to continue, "But, it's hard when I hear her voice in my dreams, her screams in my nightmares…"

"It's alright, Minette." Sanji said after a moment of hesitation, "You don't have to continue, it was a stupid question. I'm sorry I asked."

"We were identical twins, you know." Her hands holding the warm glass of milk with such care, it was as if she were holding her dying sister in her arms one last time. "Sometimes it was like we could read eachother's minds and we would finish each other's sentences quite frequently. Whenever we tried to beat the other at sword fighting neither of us could win because we knew the other's next move. Shi was a good little sister."

"Her name was Shi?"

"Yeah," Minette smiled, chuckling at an old and forgotten memory, "She used to tell me that Mom and Dad must have gotten our names mixed up because I was more timid than her when it came to meeting new people."

"Your Mom and Dad, what were they like?"

Minette looked up from her hands, "I don't remember. One day the house caught fire and that was the last time we ever had a normal life."

Silence washed over them again as Minette lifted the cup to her lips and took a small sip to test its taste on her tongue, and it was just as she predicted: warm milk. Having not had milk in a long while, Minette could help herself from taking another sip, this one much larger than the first.

Lowering the glass, Minette looked to the blond chef, "Why are you awake Sanji?"

Sanji chuckled now, "I've been working on breakfast. Luffy's been whipping through his and everyone else's food lately, I want to make sure you and Nami have enough food of your own."

"So…" she looked over, seeing the other pots on the stove over a low flame, "All of that is for the boys?"

"Yup. Then I'm going to make yours and Nami's food fresh in a few hours. Speaking of, go ahead and finish off that milk before it gets cold, okay? Then I'll put you back to bed."

Without reply, Minette slowly took down the milk and let Sanji take the glass to the sink before he picked her up again. "It's much too cold outside for you to be walking around without shoes."

"I've never worn shoes before," Minette replied simply and didn't meet his gaze when he looked down at her oddly.

"Then shocks, at least."

It was the end of the discussion as they entered the hallway and walked past the boy's room before entering Nami's. Quietly, Sanji walked in and placed Minette on the bed next to Nami and left without another word. He could've stared at Nami a little longer, but Minette needed to go to sleep. He understood that for a young girl like herself sleep was the number one thing she needs, even if she can't age at all.

But laying there, staring up at the ceiling, Minette could not trust herself to slip into a nice slumber as Sanji had promised. She was too afraid to slip into another nightmare, that she'll be so scared in her dream that she will not be able to wake herself up before it becomes worse.

So she laid there, staring up at the ceiling just thinking. Thinking about what her future had in store. She had so many things she had yet to know. So many places to visit. So many starry nights ahead of her and so much time as well.

She had all of the time in the world, but that thought kind of scared her and made her think about much further into the future. About how she will be able to deal with her newly found friends leaving her to find a new adventure. About how she will be able to deal with the fact that she will have to life through their death when age finally catches up to them. About how she will have to deal with the fact that she will once again be left alone on this earth once they are gone.

Closing her eyes and turning on her side to face Nami's back, Minette couldn't help but think that her nightmares were better than her current thoughts.

She had scared herself with just the thought of losing these people. To her, thinking about the future was probably a much scarier experience than reliving a terrible memory, but sleep would not welcome her. It teased her with the thought of its warm embrace but did not let her drift. It found that leaving her with her thoughts was much more amusing than seeing her suffer in dreams.

So she laid there, staring at the ceiling once again, and for the first time she wished more than anything she could fall asleep.


	16. Chapter: 15

_When the storm of life is raging, stand by me._

 _~Charles A. Tindley_

How long had it been since her gaze first landed on the ceiling? Seconds? Minutes? Hours? She couldn't tell. After her thoughts plunged into darkness it was all she could see. All she could feel. Her mind and body numb from being so tired yet not given the satisfaction of sleep. But perhaps that was best. Now that her mind was blank, no more thoughts of the future soared through the now empty space and she was able to spare herself from another nightmare. Perhaps that was the truth behind Sanji's special night time drink, not to pull her under but to leave her awake to wonder without the fear of being riddled with awful memories. Or, it just didn't work…

Hearing the door to Nami's room slightly creek, Minette's eyes finally broke free from the ceiling and gazed towards the noise. Upon first glance she saw no one peering through the ajar door, but after a moment of silence, Zoro's head popped into the room. With their gaze fixed on each other, Zoro brought his hand up to reveal a brown sack, lumpy from the contents it held. A smile instantly broke across Minette's face upon seeing the old sack and carefully climbed out of bed. Zoro opened the door wide enough for her to slip through before they walked down the hall of snoring boys.

Once on the deck, Minette looked at the horizon in awe. The sky was a creamy mix of light orange and blue as the clouds were highlighted with pink. Nothing but the reflecting water could be seen but she didn't yearn to see anything else than what was in front of her now. She had suddenly wished she knew how to paint, that she grew up blessed with the ability to recreate images she once saw or the one she is experiencing now. She wanted this moment to last forever just as a painting did.

Zoro's chuckled had brought her from her trance on the cotton candy sky as he sat with his back against the outside wall of the kitchen. When she looked back at him, she was delighted to see the sack - of whatever was in it this time - lifted in the air as it waited patiently to be grabbed by small hands.

Sitting next to him, Zoro placed the sack in her lap and crossed his arms behind his head as he watched her open it and quickly pull out an apple. She didn't hesitate to take a bite out of the juicy fruit and she didn't stop chewing even after Zoro started talking.

"I knew you'd be awake."

"Never went to sleep," Minette replied in between bites.

Zoro's only reply was a single snort as he let Minette polish off the other four apples he had for her. But even after she was finished they didn't speak. They simply let the sound of the waves be the only conversation aboard the ship, well, aside from the occasional, obnoxious, and very loud snore from Luffy. But when the sun had peaked fully over the horizon and no longer held the early honey tone glow, things started getting a little more lively.

Sanji was the first to wake up out of the remaining crew members and bid Minette a welcoming "Good morning, my dear," before entering the kitchen to prepare the small girl's and Nami's breakfast as promised hours before. Next was Nami - who quickly lead Minette to the kitchen in fear the boys would eat the poor girl's breakfast before she could even lay her eyes on the food - then Ussop who went right to telling Minette his dream of being Captain Ussop once again. And even though Minette knew it was all lies that spewed from his mouth the moment he started telling her a story of him sailing the seas, she couldn't help but smile and laugh at every single joke or exaggerated situation he told. She even faked a few gasps to boost his confidence and continue his outrageous stories.

With just Zoro, Sanji, Nami, and Ussop awake nothing was too noisy. Everyone was doing their own thing whether it be cooking, navigating, or keeping Zoro and Minette entertained. It was a peaceful morning with casual, happy conversations, that was until the last Straw Hat finally awoke.

Bursting through the kitchen's threshold, Luffy was wide awake and as lively as ever. "MEAT! I NEED MEAT!"

Sanji sighed, his calm persona completely gone now that Luffy was awake, and said, "We have no meat, Luffy. That's why we're going to Logue Town to get supplies. Can't you remember anything we tell you?"

"What?! There's no more meat?!"

Nami shook her head, muttering "He's hopeless," before looked at him, "We'll eat in just a moment. Just be patient."

As Ussop continued his tales of his adventures to Minette while she sat on the counter, watching as his body moved making gestures as he explained the story, Luffy sat at the table with Nami - Zoro had left to lift weights before they docked on the front deck. The captain was balancing silverware on top of each other, creating a small tower of sorts as Nami read the newspaper, everyone trying to occupy themselves as Sanji finished cooking the meal. And everything almost turned to Hell when he announced it was.

Luffy had gotten so excited to eat his and everyone else's food that as soon as he shoved the first roll of bread in his mouth, he immediately started to choke.

"Luffy, you idiot!" Sanji yelled.

"Not again," Zoro sighed.

"Ussop go get some water," Nami demanded, and while all of this was happening, all Minette could do was laugh. Was it Luffy's expression? Was it the sudden but subtle panic in the room? Or just the fact that Luffy has done this before? Either way, Minette could not stop herself from laughing and falling backwards, off of the pot and onto the floor. She had never laughed so much in her life, it hurt her sides, even her usually misused vocal cords, and she couldn't help but wish that every morning be exactly like this one.

Docking, everyone exited the ship and walked into Logue Town with smiles plastered on their faces, all except Minette. She felt so exposed in this town. There were no trees - none that she could climb at least - and there were so many people here, she had never seen so many in one place before; so it wasn't too unusual for her to be shaking, cowering behind Nami as she held to the back of her belt.

"Yeah! This is gonna be so fun!" Luffy cheered.

"Every pirate heading to the Grand Line stops here to resupply. It has everything you can possibly need," Nami smiled, not minding Minette as she pressed herself more against her leg.

"E-Every pirate?" Minette stuttered so quietly no one heard.

"If that's the case then I'm going to go on a shopping spree," Ussop said, already scanning all the shop signs for what he might like.

"I'll be able to stock up on fresh produce," Sajni smiled. "And fresh women."

A chill ran down Minette's spine.

"You'd think there'd be a swordsmith around here," Zoro thought aloud and upon glancing up, Minette watched as Nami's face suddenly lit up.

"I thought you were broke. Are you gonna steal a sword?" Nami cooed, "That's not a good example to set for little Minette, you know."

"Well," Luffy smiled, "We're gonna find out where they kill people." More chills ran down Minette's spine as he suddenly grabbed her wrist and started running in a random direction. "Come on, Mouse," Luffy laughed, "Let's go see where the King of the Pirates was killed!"

"Um… O-Okay."

"Hey, wait" Ussop called after them, "We have to pick a meeting place!"

It was quiet as they watched the pair run away from them then Sanji spoke up, "Should we have really let Minette go with Luffy? I mean… it is her first time on a different and heavily populated island…"

Nami laughed nervously, "No, they should be fine. Luffy did say he wouldn't let her out of his sights back on her home island. Even called himself Big Brother…"

"Does Luffy even remember that?" Zoro asked and they all sighed with defeat and slouched shoulders.

"Probably not…" they all mumbled.

Running and weaving through the crowds of people, Luffy was laughing as Minette tried to keep up. Her feet not making a single sound as they patted the pavement but that didn't mean she was having a hard time staying by Luffy's side.

"Mouse," Luffy smiled, not looking down at her as he weaved through another crowd, "Did you know that the King of the Pirates was born and executed in this town? We could be running in his very footsteps right now!"

It was so sudden, Minette was not prepared in the slightest. When Luffy jumped to clicked his heels together her hand slipped out of his and she took a small tumble; but Luffy kept running, never realizing that she was no longer running beside him. Feeling the stares from the people around her, Minette was quick to pick herself up and search for any sign of him, but she was too short. She couldn't see over the crowd of people. Giving up, Minette just ran in the direction she thought they were racing towards.

Running down an alley, Minette was faced with no more people but another boat dock. Without looking where she was going, she cut left but quickly found herself back on the ground. She had ran into something hard; but upon looking up she found it wasn't something, instead, it was someone. It was a man, tall, broad shoulders. His hair a silver and grey mixture while he smoked two cigars at the same time.

Instantly shaking with fright again - mostly from being lost and running into a scary looking man - Minette couldn't move. She could feel his eyes looking her up and down, pausing at the sight of her bare feet but didn't say anything about it. Instead he kneeled down and looked Minette head on.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going."

Surprised by his sudden apology, Minette couldn't help but think about how she should've said it instead of him. "U-uh, um." Slowly regaining her courage, Minette stammered, "H-Have you seen a boy w-with a red shirt and s-straw hat on?"

"Older brother?" the man asked, making Minette recall the time where Luffy declared it so.

She nodded.

Helping Minette to her feet, the man said, "Just follow the smoke, Kid."

As Minette looked to where the smoke had shifted, she gazed in wonder and quickly thanked the man before running down another alley the smoke led her through; but upon her exciting, she soon found herself out of smoke to follow and no Luffy. Instead, she saw Zoro glaring at swords in a window to a shop. Quickly, she ran through the crowd of people and grabbed onto his leg.

Looking down, Zoro was slightly surprised to see the small girl hiding her face in his pant leg without Luffy anywhere in sight. Then he sighed, "He ran off somewhere, didn't he?"

She nodded and jumped when there was a small crash behind her.

Zoro placed his hand on the top of her messy hair, "It's okay, Shrimp. They're just people, no one's going to hurt you here."

"B-But Nami said-"

"Nami doesn't know what she's talking about. We're the only pirates on this island, ya hear? So stop being so worried. Plus, you found me. I'll cut off anyone's hand who dares touch you."

Minette looked up at him now and smiled but quickly jumped again when people behind them started yelling.

"Monster? How rude." A woman's voice yelled. It was so loud and abrupt, it even made Zoro look over to see what it was all about.

"Shut up. Our boss is behind bars because of you and your idiot of a captain," a man said.

Zoro turned around now and started walking towards the commotion with Minette still clinging to his pant leg. Making his way towards the front of the crowd, he looked down to Minette, "Don't remove yourself from my side, got it? You're so short I don't think I would be able to find you."

Minette nodded in reply.

Finally at the front, Minette peeked around Zoro's leg to see a women with short blue hair and red framed glasses standing before two armed men as she held something close to her chest. The men looked mean and ready to battle with their swords already drawn, but the women did not back down and Minette couldn't help but wonder if she had looked as brave as this woman here when she stood up to the cannibal pirate captain a few days back.

She watched in both fright and amazement as the women dared to not back down and retorted, "Haven't you learned your lesson?"

"Definitely not," one man said.

"We're supposed to bring your corpse to our boss so he can see that we finished you off," the other stated, and Minette instantly became frightened for the women, for herself as well. Flash backs of the one exiled pirate trying to kill her entered her mind and she started shaking again.

But the women held her ground, "If you insist, I will fight you."

The first man chuckled, "That is so cute."

"She's really very funny," the other laughed.

"You do realize you're a girl right?" The first snorted. Minette could feel all of Zoro's muscles tense by hearing the statement and in a flash his hand was on his sword, ready to fight. But he didn't have time to unsheath the weapon when the women had cut them down with the once wrapped sword she had been holding. Minette couldn't help but be amazed and stare at her in awe and so was Zoro. The look on his face was utter shock as he picked up the women's glasses - which had fell off during the quickly ended battle - right in front of him.

As she sat on the ground, fumbling for her glasses, Zoro walked up to hand them to her - when much to his, the women's, and Minette's horror - he cracked them with his strength.

The women gasped and Minette hid behind Zoro again when she started yelling, "Those were my glasses!"

Reeling back instantly, Zoro come to the sudden realization at what he just did and tried to utter out an apology. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean-"

"How could you be so mean?"

"It was an accident, I swear!" Zoro held up his hands in defence, but it was too late. The women was beyond upset.

"You're going to pay for those!" Zoro froze, even Minette knew he didn't have any money. Hell, Nami didn't even give her any. "Follow me," the worme frowned - no, glared at Zoro.

"Um, hey. Excuse me. Where are we going exactly?" Zoro asked, keeping in mind that Minette was still closely attached to his leg.

"Ugh. I still can't believe you broke my glasses."

"I told you. I'll pay you back, okay? Geez."

"You'll pay me back. You don't even look like you have any money, am I right?"

Well, she has us there, Minette thought and bumped into Zoro's leg when they stopped walking.

"Well, that's true. I am kind of broke."

"I knew it!" The women yelled in Zoro's face, making Minette cower slightly. "I could tell by the look on your face you're pretty desperate. What is it? Your sick mother needs food, medicine? Or did your wife run away with another man and leave you all alone to raise the children by yourself?"

"Hey, I'm trying here!" Zoro yelled back and the women froze. "I'm doing the best I can with the money I have. Was even going to buy Minette shoes since I can't afford anything else in this town."

"Minette?"

Freezing upon hearing her name, said girl slowly looked up from hiding in Zoro's pant leg again to see them both gazing down at her. The women seemed to be baffled that the man before her actually had a child tagging along behind him. A child with torn pants, dirty sweatshirt, and no shoes.

Zoro, seeing an opportunity to get out of the situation, kneeled before Minette and patted her head. "Minette, meet the lady who's going to take away your shoes." Confused and slightly still scared of the woman, Minette couldn't speak when Zoro picked her up and held her against his chest.

Still utterly confused about what was going on, Minette waved to the seemingly less upset woman and instantly her whole view of Zoro changed in that instant.

The women said, "I'm sorry. I didn't realize your child was right there…"

"It's fine. Minette here is tough. Now how should we repay you?"

"No, no. This isn't right. You obviously don't have any money. Let me buy whatever you need. I insist."

Zoro patted Minette's back as she hid away from other people's stares in his shoulder. She knew that Zoro was using her, and she knew that she told Zoro she prefered to not have shoes, but she didn't feel guilty in the slightest for the woman. It was mostly her fault for dropping her glasses in the first place…


	17. Chapter: 16

_Never complain and never explain._

 _~Benjamin Disraeli_

Minette could not grasp the meaning of shoes. With the sandals the women was so nice to buy for her, Minette could not walk in them. She was so used to walking barefoot all the time it was a strange sensation to not feel the ground move beneath her. Shi had once explained to her that shoes had been invented so that the people's feet would not hurt, but Minette found nothing else but pain whenever she fell. She had fallen so much in the first couple of steps she took with them on that Zoro gave in and picked her up, saving her from her misery. She didn't want to be rude in telling the women that she prefers to live without the sandals. After all, Zoro had gotten them out of doing whatever she wanted them to do to pay for the broken glasses.

The women was even kind enough to show Zoro to the nearest swordsmith and inform him about the two valuable swords he just bought - and the one already attracted the his hip - are every rare and high quality. Minette even found it funny that the women begged Zoro to give her his legendary sword and she found it even more funny when the women and Zoro held a conversation about himself. The women was obviously not all that smart despite her extensive knowledge of swords…

Now, as they walked down the streets away from the swordsmith's shop, Minette was on Zoro's back the sandals still attracted to her feet. As Zoro walked, Minette could feel a new sense of pride radiating off of him, it was obvious he was happy to have three new swords since two of his others were broken burning his battle with the cannibal pirates.

"You hungry, Shrimp?" Zoro called back. Minette thought about it for a moment. She was still full from breakfast and wasn't hungry now, and as Sanji had once told her: If you're not hungry don't have a chef make something for you. It'll just be a waist.

She shook her head.

"Ah. Well, perhaps if we run into Luffy we can spend the rest of the money on food. Speaking of which, how did you lose each other?"

Minette sighed, "He let go of my hand for one second then disappeared. I don't know how he did it."

Zoro chuckled, "Yeah. That sounds like him alright." Making it to a flight of stairs leading to the town square, Zoro put Minette down and sat beside her. "One way or another, Luffy will end up finding us so we should just wait here for now."

"So I can take off these?" Minette asked, pointing to the sandals.

"Do what you want. Maybe if you give them to Ussop he can make something out of them."

Without reply Minette slipped off the sandals and sighed with relief when bare skin came in contact with warm pavement. The very second her feet touched its bumpy surface she could sense all of the people walking around her, feel the earth slightly tremble beneath their feet. Running bare foot on her home island was one of the only ways she survived so long. She knew and could feel when someone was drawing dangerously close.

Hearing the sword being unsheathed, Minette looked up to see Zoro admiring one of his new swords with a smile on his face. "You know why this one is so special, Minette?"

Flashbacks of the horrifying events that took place just an hour ago popped into the girl's mind. "Because it didn't cut you?" When it really should have…

"Despite it being cursed it still didn't cut me. How interesting."

Sensing the familiar patterns in his walk and hearing the flopping of his sandals, Minette looked up to see their rubber captain running across the square below them. Quickly pointing him out she said, "Look, Zoro. It's Luffy."

Standing, Zoro patted her head, "What'd I tell ya? Hey Luffy!"

Watching Luffy trip suddenly from hearing his name, Minette giggled when the Straw Hat looked up then smiled wide.

"Zoro!" then he saw Minette. "Hey Mouse, when did you get up there?"

Minette sighed, he actually didn't notice her disappearance.

"Doesn't matter," Zoro said, "You hungry? I've been thinking about eating somewhere."

"Yeah! Let's go!"

After eating lunch Luffy led the way through town, never explaining where he was going to Zoro or Minette and not once was a word shared between the trio walking through the town. As Minette walked, she found it refreshing to be able to sense everything around her once more. Shoes were a thing in the past that she never wanted to experience again.

A small wind picking up Luffy's hat awoke the small girl from her thoughts as she looked up to see it being carried away and Luffy running after it. She went to go after him as well when Zoro placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't you remember what I said? Stay by my side, you're too short to be found in a group of people."

Staring up at him, Minette sighed, "But now Luffy's too far away to track down."

"Ugh. Let's go find the idiot then."

Walking in the direction he went in, Minette made sure to keep a hold on Zoro's pant leg as to not get separated but coming to a different side street, Minette froze upon hearing Luffy's contagious laughter. It was obvious it was the Healo Healo fruit helping her hear his voice from this far away since Zoro didn't seem to catch it. Looking up to tell him, Minette was shocked to find that he was no longer there and she was devastated in finding out that she had accidentally let go of him when she stopped to listen for Luffy. He was too far away to be tracked down through the sea of people which left the small girl with no other choice but to pursue Luffy instead. She only hoped Zoro wouldn't panic upon her sudden disappearance.

Following the sound of Luffy's laughter, Minette came to an open area with a tall platform in the middle of it. She wasn't surprised to see Luffy standing on the top of it.

"Oh! Hey Mouse, you look even smaller from up here!" Luffy called down to the girl and Minette could suddenly feel everyone's gaze turned to her. Instantly, she wanted to hide, to get away from everyone's eyes. But she couldn't move. So many people have never looked at her all at once before and without Zoro to hid behind she felt incredibly vulnerable.

Then, a man in a dark drown uniform stole the attention away from Minette and back towards Luffy. "Hey Kid, get down from there. That's government property you're standing on!"

"Only if you say the magic word and smile nicely!" Luffy called back and Minette was stunted by his idiocy. Did he just not care about Government Officials or was he that dense?

"I'm not playing! I'll arrest you if you don't come down!" The man yelled back and was about to advance towards the platform when he was struck with a metal bat and rendered unconscious.

Minette gasped at the sight, the one who struck to man was a woman, but Minette was not fooled by her beauty like all the citizens were. It was obvious she was a pirate. Being out in the open like this, Minette could sense a large group of men quickly making their way towards the platform and before she could get out of the way, the water fountain a few yards in front of her was rammed by the men and large chunks of the stone were hurtling towards her.

Knowing she wouldn't be able to run away or dodge them fast enough, Minette held her head and squeezed her eyes shut, waiting to be pummeled, but it never came. Opening her eyes, she found herself on the platform, in Luffy's arms and unscaved. She was grateful that Luffy had saved her, but know she was stuck up here too.

Looking down she did not feel the same free and blissful feeling she received from being high up in trees, no, what she felt up here was utter fear. She had never felt so exposed and vulnerable than how she felt on this platform for the whole town to see. She was so afraid that when Luffy lowered her to the floor, she instantly sank down and sat in the middle of the small rectangle. At this angle, no one could see her and that alone made her feel more safe. But curiosity got the better of her and she peeked over the side to see that same woman and the men that she sensed before had crashed into the fountain. She wasn't so surprised to see that they were pirates but when people started running when they recognized him, she knew that this fight wasn't going to be easy and she was stuck right in the middle of it.

Sensing something, Minette shoved Luffy out of the way, "Look out!" She meant to fall over the edge with Luffy, but she was suddenly caught. Her head and her wrists were held down by a heavy piece of wood and a man sitting on top of it.

"Mouse!" Luffy yelled up to her, not caring that he had landed on his head on the way down. It was not the time to be upset about that, Minette just saved him and is now captured. "Gum, Gum-"

"Don't you dare Monkey D. Luffy or else I'll kill her!" the man sitting on top of Minette's head lock yelled down to Luffy as he unsheathed his sword.

"What a splendid idea, Kapashi. Let's kill his little friend in front of him first before the actual execution begins!"

Minette should be scared. She should be shaking with fear and begging for her life right now. But all she could do was look up. All of her senses were beginning occupied with the sudden change in weather. The clouds were moving in fast, the wind was picking up. She could feel the warm air rising as the cool air dropped so dramatically all of a sudden and she gasped in surprise. There was going to be a thumber storm…

"Don't worry, Mouse! I'll save ya-!"

"N-No, Luffy! Wait!" Minette yelled back. She couldn't tell him her reasoning for not wanting be to saved. She didn't want to tip off the other pirate and she didn't want Luffy to get electrocuted. She knew he was made out of rubber, but who knows what thunder will do to him.

Within seconds, thunder clouds were overhead. Their dark grey ominous demeanor casted away any sort of sun light there once was on the island minutes ago.

"You're friend is willing to die for you Straw Hat. Better say your goodbyes!" The captain of the clown pirates - Buggy - yelled down to Luffy as he traded places with his second in command. Now holding the sword, Buggy laughed at Minette's shaking form. She couldn't help it. She was either about to be electrocuted or executed and neither sounded pleasant since she was going to have to live with the aftermath later on.

" _What was it like being struck by lightning, Minette?"_

" _It was so much fun, Shi! My heart was pounding so fast and it felt as though I was flying. Like I wasn't shocked with volts but with energy. I felt like I could run for miles without getting tired."_

" _Did you start running immediately after you were shocked?"_

" _Yeah!"_

" _You must have been running so fast then because I couldn't see you at all. You scared me half to death! I thought you decided to disappear before me!"_

" _Haha. Sorry Shi, but I'm not going to be doing that ever again. I hurt so much right now..."_

"Stop the execution!" Recognizing that voice anywhere, Minette looked among the crowd to see Zoro and Sanji.

"Zoro! Sanji!" Minette called out with a smile and watched as Zoro grabbed one of his swords.

"You idiot! I told you not to leave my side!" Zoro yelled.

"Luffy, you better have a good explanation why my dear Minette is about to be executed instead of you!" Sanji growled.

"Because if I help, they'll kill her!" Luffy yelled back.

"Well," Buggy chuckled, "We were going to kill her anyway! Say bye bye little girl!" Lifting the sword over his head, Minette trembled as she watched Zoro, Sanji, and Luffy take action against the other pirates, taking them down one by one but the crackle of thunder drew her attention to the sky once more.

It was about to happen. A sudden and very painful jolt of electricity was about to reach her and she was about to feel that same flying sensation as before. "Luffy, Sanji, Zoro!" Minette called down to them, "I'm sorry if this scares you… But I'll see you all later." With that said, she could feel the blade of the sword come in contact with her neck but before it could actually cut her the electricity in the air clung to the metal and a huge thunder bolt struck the tower.

The pain was unimaginable. She wanted to scream but the air had been wisped away from her lunges the moment it struck. Blue flames engulfed her and Buggy as the tower slowly crumbled and fell to the pavement below. Then the pain went away and everything was in slow motion just like she remembered. Her heart was beating so fast, her legs already moving as she knocked down anyone who dared be frozen in her path. When the Healo Healo fruit combined with thunder, it was a weightless feeling and easy to get addicted to. But just like any drug, the wonderful sensation didn't last forever. More like a couple of minutes.

When everything was set back to its natural motion, most of the clown pirates were on the ground unconscious and Minette was no different. All three of the Straw Hats ran towards her, hoping more than anything that she wasn't dead.

Sanji was the first to reach her. Kneeling beside her, he held her twitching form in his arms, her body still paying the price for getting such a sudden dose of high voltage. Placing his hand against the side of her neck, he felt for a pulse.

"Mouse!" Luffy yelled out, "Come on, you can't die! You can't physically die remember!"

"Her heart rate is really low!" Sanji declared.

Coughing, Minette awoke to the feeling of the ground trembling under her and before anyone could ask if she was alright she said, "The Marines… about a hundred men are coming to capture the pirates in the square. We need to go."

"She's right," Sanji helped Minette get on Zoro's back and started running as the Marines entered the square like Minette predicted. "We have to get to the ship!"

As they ran, they tore down any opponent they ran into, not giving them a second glance let alone thought as they rushed to get Minette to the safety of the ship.

"God Damnit, Shrimp! You scared the hell out of us!" Zoro yelled as he ran.

"S-Sorry."

"Save it for another rainy day, alright!" Sanji growled, "She's in no condition to be doing anything else but resting. She should actually be dead!"

Hearing the battle cry of the Marines behind them, Zoro said, "Where the Hell do they keep coming from?!"

"No time to think about it. Minette needs medical attention," but that train of thought was lost when a woman appeared in the thick rain. Standing in their way. It was the woman from before.

"I didn't know you were Zoro," she said, "and a pirate as well. You lied. You're just another liar!"

The group stopped before the woman and Zoro stepped forward, Minette still clinging to his back, shaking and twitching from the thunder and cold rain. "You never asked me what my name was, did you? So I never lied, did I?"

"You know that there's no way I'm going to allow someone like you to leave this island with such a legendary sword. Give it to me! Right now!"

"Hey cook," Zoro said as he looked over at Sanji, "Take Minette and get out of here. I can handle her."

"Zoro, you asshole! You can't fight a girl!"

"Who asked you?! Now leave and she better not be dead when I get back or else you're joining her!"

Taking Minette in his arms, Sanji and Luffy ran past the woman and towards the docks. But not before quickly running into another obstacle. Smoker was there, blocking their path and they had to stop once more.

"Straw Hat Luffy," Smoker glared, "You're finally here. I already told you that you couldn't make it to the grand line without beating me first, didn't I?"

Luffy smiled at the Marine captain, "Oh yeah! I forgot!"

"You're really stupid."

"We need to go, Luffy. Minette's starting to lose consciousness again."

"Sanji, I'll be right there. Go on."

"I don't know about that," Smoker said, "This will be the end for you."

"Just go," Luffy smiled, "And make sure Mouse is okay."

Running down a side road with Minette in his arms, Sanji was finally out of the town and running towards the already sailing ship. "Nami!" He called out, "Wait up, we're back!"

"Where are the others?" she called out.

"Ugh, who cares? We'll just get them later, but right now Minette need help."

"We can't get any closer - Look out behind you!"

"Damn it!" Sanji cursed as he kicked the men surrounding him. He needed to get Minette to safety but if he set her down they will capture her. Seeing his distress, Ussop jumped into the raging water and started shooting at the Marines, but his heroic antics were short lived. A giant gust of wind blew him out of the water as well as Luffy, Zoro, Minette, and Sanji all in the same place while the Going Merry sailed off with Nami.

Going to pick Minette up, Ussop was suddenly shocked upon barely touching her coat. "Ouch! What the Hell happened to her?"

"She was struck by lightning," Zoro started as he picked her up instead, not minding the small shock he received. "Hey, Shrimp," Zoro said, looking down at the small girl in his arms, "You still alive?"

Without opening her eyes, Minette nodded, "Y-Yeah."

"Good," Luffy chuckled, "because you're going to need to hold on tight. Gum Gum!" Everyone stared at Luffy in horror as he created a slingshot out of himself, aiming directly at them. "ROCKET!" He shot forward and before anyone of the boys could escape they were grabbed by Luffy and flung into the air. In no time they were back aboard the ship.

"You're here," Nami sighed with relief.

"Yeah, but that's the least of our worries." Zoro sat up, having landed on his back with Minette unconscious on his chest.

"What?"

"It's Mouse," Luffy shrugged with a smile, then laughed. "She got struck by lightning!"

IMPORTANT!  
Hi everyone! B.S. Queen here, I need to make a very important announcement real quick.  
Okay so just to let you all know, this story was pre-written in the very beginning of this year, like March, and I didn't write anymore since then and HEADS UP! next chapter is the last chapter I wrote! It's the conclusion of how Minette entered the Straw Hat crew's lives and when she comes into the story line. I will be posting that chapter but that'll be the end of Unbreakable.  
Don't be upset (because I know a lot of you are right now) cause if I get at least ten people to comment and request to continue the story, I will but it'll continue in a different story doc on Quotev and be deemed a sequel.  
Trust me, I want to continue writing this story but I feel as though it'll just be boring since you already know what adventures they're going to go on. *Sigh* Anyway, if you still want me to continue Minette's adventures with the crew, I'll be more than delighted to write you more cute fluff, I'm just concerned about updating frequently. Tell me what you think in the comments and remember: at least ten people have to request a second story before or after the next and final chapter of Unbreakable is uploaded.  
Thank you all for the support and love and remember to always Think Happy Thoughts!  
~Blood Splatter Queen


	18. Chapter: END

_We cannot direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails._

 _~Thomas S. Monson_

Sitting up, Minette sighed with relief. It took a few hours but her headache from getting struck by lightning had finally gone away and she was able to see clearly again. Walking out of the room Nami and her share, Minette exited the sleeping hall to see the sun high in the sky and the deck full of boys. Zoro was sleeping, Ussop was inventing something, and Luffy was being scolded by Sanji for something he most likely did.

Seeing the little girl from the top deck, Nami smiled, "Minette, are you feeling better? You were in there for a long time."

Minette looked up to see Nami leaning over the railing of the top deck, a smile gracing her face. The small girl couldn't help but smile back, "Yes. I'm fine. A little hungry though."

"That's a relief," Sanji spoke up and walked towards Minette only to place a heavy hand on her head and rub in her hair, "Because if you weren't I would've been a little worried. Zoro told me you didn't eat lunch." Glancing towards the swordsman, Minette wasn't surprised to see him still asleep despite hearing his name - living with Luffy's snoring she expected them all to be immune to hearing things in their sleep by now - but she was surprised to find he cared enough to tell Sanji that she didn't eat lunch and hardly any breakfast.

"Oh! Oh! Sanji, I want a snack too!" Luffy called, making Minette giggled as Sanji turned around.

"I just fed you!" Ignoring Luffy's instant pout, Sanji smiled down to Minette as they walked up the steps, "Now what would you like, my dear? I'll make anything you want."

Entering the kitchen, Minette looked around. Everything was so clean, the dishes were washed, the stove and table were scrubbed down, and the floors were shiney from being mopped. She almost didn't want to take another step inside and ruin the cleanliness, but feeling the gentle push on her back from Sanji, Minette was sitting on her silver pot within seconds.

"Don't know?" Sanji smiled.

She shrugged and smiled back.

"Then how about a Chef Surprise? I promise you'll love it."

Nodding, Minette watched as Sanji took out a silver pot and started to boil some water as he peeled apples. Instantly Minette knew she would like the dish no matter what since it had apples in it.

After a couple of minutes of watching Sanji go back and forth from adding spices to the apples and stirring the rice in a different pot, Minette's gaze was brought to the door as it swung open to reveal Ussop.

Walking into the room, Ussop paid no mind to Minette as he held whatever he was creating and spoke to the working chef, "Hey Sanji, got any flat objects I can use for this?"

Looking over his shoulder and seeing the oddly shaped object, Sanji sighed turning back to the food, "Sorry. I don't."

"I have some sandals," Minette's voice soft as she spoke, "You can have those."

"You have sandals but you don't wear them?" Ussop asked.

"Some lady got them for me today, but I don't like wearing shoes so you can have them if you want them."

Ussop smiled at her, "Yeah, that'd be great!"

Minette stood to retrieve them and quickly gave them to Ussop before taking her place back on the silver pot. She watched as he ripped off the pink straps and started to detach the beams from the souls before trying to figure out where exactly he wanted them to go. Sliding off of her high chair, Minette sat next to the inventor, "What are you making anyway, Ussop?"

"Well, if you must know Minette, I'm actually a spi planning on ruining this crews plan on making it to the Grand Line with this new device!"

Minette giggled, "I don't believe it for a second, so what is it really?"

"It's going to be a compass when I'm finished making repairs. While running, Nami accidentally dropped it in Logue Town and she asked me to fix it."

"Oh," Sanji said, looking over his shoulder at the mention of Nami's name, "So that's all that's left? Just bits and pieces?"

"Well, there was more but it was all junk."

"Wow, Ussop," Minette breathed, "You're really smart."

"It's my dream to become the greatest warrior of the sea one day and all of the greatest warriors are really smart."

"Oh yeah," Sanji said, "Minette, what's your reason for going to the Grand Line?"

She looked up at him, "I have to have a reason?"

"Well no, but everyone aboard the Going Merry has a dream that can only be accomplished by going to the Grand Line. So what's yours?"

"I've never really thought about it before."

"You mean you're going on this dangerous journey just for the hell of it?!" Ussop gasped and Minette shrugged.

"I guess so."

Sighing, Sanji turned around with a plate of what looked like rice and apples with a thick brown sauce then smiled to Minette, "You can figure it out along the way, my dear. But for now, your food is ready. I have made a delicious cinnamon rice dish topped with cooked apple slices. It's as sweet as you, my little Mouse!"

"Pervert," Ussop mumbled.

"Shut up!"

Ignoring the boys, just hearing what it was made out of - though, never hearing of cinnamon before - made her stomach growl. It smelled just as sweet as it sounded and she couldn't wait to begin eating. While Minette sat back on her chair Sanji placed the food in front of her and in came Nami holding a map with the others trailing behind.

Placing the map on the table, Minette took her first bite of food as she watched Nami's fingers point out a place on the paper. "Take a look," Nami said, "I'm familiar with the rumors and these drawings confirm it. As unimaginable as it may seem the entrance to the Grand Line is a mountain."

Hearing a small creek behind her, Minette looked back to see the rudder slightly tilted to the right. Looking to Ussop, they made eye contact before she pointed to the rudder and instantly Ussop caught on. He stood and started to try and correct the small error. As he did so, Minette turned back around and continued eating, listening to the conversation as well.

"A mountain?" Luffy asked.

"So what do we do?" Zoro sighed then chuckled, "Crash into it?"

"I didn't believe it but the map's clear," Nami confirmed, "The mountain appears to be riddled with small connals. So we might have to go up and over it."

"Oh," Luffy smiled, "Sounds like fun."

Minette paused from eating and sighed, "I'm no expert Nami, but I have a lot of experience with gravity, trust me, so I'm having a hard time believing doing something like that is even possible."

Everyone looked at the small girl. She was normally so quiet she's never said so much at once before and in such a serious tone. But then Zoro looked back to Nami, "Yeah, what are you talking about? Even if there was connells or whatever, a ship can't climb up a mountain."

"Well the maps says other wise," Nami huffed.

"That's right! If Nami thinks something can be done than it can be, got that?!" Sanji defended, then turned to Minette who was shaking in fear she was going to get yelled at next. But he simply smiled, "Now that is a good point, Minette, but you must be open minded in situations like this, alright?"

She nodded and continued eating, regretting saying anything at all.

Zoro sighed and rested his chin on his hand, "Yeah, remember that map was stolen from Buggy the Clown. He's untrustworthy-"

Giving out a loud grown, Ussop yelled, "In case anyone's noticed, the rudder's stuck. A little help over here would be nice."

"Sanji," Nami sighed, "would you please give Ussop a hand? I can't think with all his shouting."

"Right away Nami!" Sanji smiled and grabbed on to the rudder but his happiness disappeared when it wouldn't budge with his strength as well.

Minette froze mid bite then looked out the window to see dark storm clouds over head. Stepping down from her seat she looked to her bear feet. She could feel the water moving below her and all around the ship. It was alarming to feel how fast the current gained strength. "The current is moving with unusual power, Nami."

Eyebrows furrowed, Nami looked to Minette, "What was that?"

"She's right," Ussop grunted as he continued to push against the rudder with Sanji, "The current is making the rudder stuck."

"Current… That must be it!" Nami proclaimed as Minette went to help the boys straighten out the rudder. "The connells do go up the mountain!"

"Come on," Zoro sighed, "how can that possibly work?"

Pointing to the map again Nami said, "Look right here. You see, the guiding lines are directing us towards this spot on the Red Line. Noticed how it's labeled here: Reverse mountain."

Letting go of the rudder, Sanji went to go take a look at the map as well. "Hello, a little help over here! Thank you!" Ussop yelled as Minette put all her weight into it but it wasn't enough.

Ignoring him, Nami continued, "These green lines represent connelles. If major currents for all four oceans flow towards this mountain, what do you think's gonna happen?"

Minette grunted as she continued to lean against the rudder, she could feel the pull of the current getting stronger and stronger below her feet. "The currents would force water up the connelles, collide at the top, and then flow straight down."

Everyone looked at Minette before Nami continued, "Minette's right. Plus, since this is a winter mountain any surface currents that don't flow up the connell will be forced down as they cool. Anything riding those currents will be pulled down as well. If we screw up and miss the entrance to the connell, the Going Merry will run into the Red Line's rock base and likely be destroyed. Surely the crew will be sucked to the bottom of the sea, understand?"

"Yeah," Luffy smiled, putting his hand over his chin, "Basically it's a mystery mountain."

Sighing at Luffy's stupidity, Nami continued, "Anyway, since we're positioned on this current we shouldn't run into any problems getting to the summit of Reverse Mountain. Only thing that would hurt us now is if something went wrong with the rudder."

"My two girls are geniuses!" Sanji cheered.

"Call me a sceptic but, ships do not climb mountains. I expect Minette to believe this but not all of you," Zoro argued.

"Well, I have heard a few stories," Sanji said, "that half the people trying to make it to the Grand Line die before they even get there. Whatever we find, it isn't going to be easy."

Then, as if on cue, Minette could hear rain. It did not start out soft, no, it was more like they sailed under a raging storm and in a matter of seconds the outside decks were puddled and slippery. Leaving Ussop and Sanji to deal with the rudder, Minette ran out in the rain to help Luffy pull up the mainsail. Climbing up the pillar was rough. It was wet and with no friction to grab onto, Minette was doing more falling than climbing.

Almost getting bucked off the boat, Minette was grabbed by her hood and hoisted up by none other than Luffy. He smiled at her, "You get that end, I'll get this one. Just be careful!"

Running to the other end of the mainsail post, Minette was quick to tie the sail up and run across the beam to the look out post. There, she saw the mountain, "L-Luffy, I see it!" she called out to him and watched as he looked out to the distance as well. A wide smile spread across his face instantly.

"Hey, guys! We see it! It's just ahead!"

Running out of the protection of the kitchen, everyone gawked at its size but as they drew closer, all Minette could think about was how the current was really moving up the mountain. The ship bucked forwards again, almost making her lose her footing before she had the chance to grab the flag poll. She was lucky she was not thrown off, she wouldn't have survived if she did.

"We have to make it through those gates just right," Nami called, "Or else we're all dead!" She looked up to where Minette was, "Minette! How are we looking?"

Peering out through the rain, Minette let the Healo Healo fruit help her see, then she said, "We're slanting off course a little!"

"Sanji! Ussop! Get it straight!" Nami demanded but as they put on more pressure, the rudder broke at the base and the ship took a dramatic turn to the right, throwing Minette off balance again. And this time, she couldn't hang on.

Falling, Minette couldn't find it within herself to scream. She wasn't scared. She wasn't afraid of anything anymore. She was more stunned that she wasn't able to hold on. But with a loud - _thud_ \- all downward movements ceased immediately and she was caught by her hood. Looking up, she saw Zoro's white sword impaling her hood and the pillar.

"You idiot!" she could hear Zoro below her, "How many times do I have to tell you to stay by my side!"

Unable to focus on that at the moment, Minette gasped then called out, "We're gonna crash!" There were so close to hitting the rocks, just seconds away from death when Luffy jumped overboard and inflated himself, creating a safe wall in between the ship and the rocks. Then, there was nothing left but to cheer. They had made it. They were heading up the mountain with such immense speeds they were at the top within seconds. Just seeing the Godly sky and flying above the clouds made Minette feel what she will never be able to do. Like she had died and gone to heaven. Reaching up, Minette could feel the weightlessness of the clouds, felt like she finally belonged somewhere in this unforgiving world, then it clicked. She knew why she wanted to go to the Grand Line now.

Not only to live a life worth living for both Shi and herself, it was time to fight for something else entirely, something she never thought she would find.

Happiness.

END

AH! LAST CHAPTER!

A fewof you have requested a sequel thus far I still need more votes before I can start the next story!

Anyway, thank you so so much for sticking with me throughout this adventure so far. I really love all the comments of encouragement and over all supportiveness from you guys!

Posting this story was no doubt the best thing I've done on this site yet!

I love all of you guys, and wish you to have the best of days today; so don't forget to Think Happy Thoughts!

~Blood Splatter Queen


	19. AN

Hey guys!

So the new story is up and on my profile.

It's called Undesirables and I just want to thank all of you for commenting and requesting a sequel.

This story is a lot of fun and I really want to share it with you guys.

I hope you enjoy!

~ Author


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